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Shoppers could face higher prices for phones, laptops and other gadgets next year, manufacturers and analysts warn, as AI data centres hoover up memory chips used in consumer electronics.The world’s biggest tech companies are ploughing head-spinningly huge sums into building the hardware that powers artificial intelligence tools like ChatGPT.Their insatiable demand is snarling up a supply chain kept tight on purpose by chipmakers who are keen to avoid price drops that dent profits, experts say.In 2026, supply chain pressure for memory chips “will be far greater than this year”, Lu Weibing, president of Chinese electronics giant Xiaomi, said this week.”Everyone will likely observe that retail prices for products will see a significant increase,” he told an earnings call.William Keating, head of semiconductor and tech consulting firm Ingenuity, expects the same.”All companies that manufacture PCs, smartphones, servers etc will be impacted by the shortage,” Keating told AFP.”End result: consumers will pay more.”In high demand are key chips known as DRAM and storage components called NAND, which are found in everyday gadgets but are also needed to help process the vast amounts of data crunched by generative AI.That’s driving up memory chip prices, which in turn is turbocharging revenue for the firms that produce them such as South Korea’s Samsung and SK hynix, and Micron and SanDisk in the United States.”AI-related server demand keeps growing, and this demand significantly exceeds industry supply,” Kim Jae-june of Samsung Electronics said last month.- ‘Keep prices high’ -Samsung said Sunday that it plans to build a new semiconductor plant in South Korea to meet the soaring demand, while SK hynix recently reported its best-ever quarterly performance, “driven by the full-scale rise in prices of DRAM and NAND”.Industry analysts TrendForce have lowered their 2026 global production forecasts for smartphones and notebook laptops.”The memory industry has begun a robust upward pricing cycle,” which “forces downstream brands to hike retail prices,” TrendForce said.Cars may also be affected, although Keating noted that a smaller portion of their tech relies on memory chips.Last week China’s largest contract chipmaker SMIC said customers were hesitant to place orders owing to uncertainty over how many phones, cars, or other products the memory chip industry can supply.The cause of the shortage is two-fold. AI-driven demand is greater than anticipated, but memory chip makers have also been “drastically cutting” spending on expanding capacity in recent years, Keating explained.”Keep capacity tight, keep prices high is basically their mantra,” he said.”They’ve done this deliberately to ensure that there’s no repeat of the most recent memory price collapse, which cost the memory makers tens of billions in losses.”Price jumps for memory chips “are huge and the trend is continuing”, said Stephen Wu, founder of the Carthage Capital investment fund.”Consumers and enterprises should expect higher memory prices, longer lead times, and more take-or-pay contracts through at least early 2026,” Wu said.burs-kaf/dan

Asian markets rallied Thursday after blowout earnings from chip powerhouse Nvidia cooled worries over an AI bubble and overshadowed a Federal Reserve report that dealt a blow to hopes for a December interest rate cut.Global equities have struggled of late owing to warnings that valuations — particularly in the tech sector — have been overdone and are due a pullback, and possibly a sharp correction, following a record-breaking rally this year.Some market-watchers have warned that the hundreds of billions of dollars pumped into artificial intelligence will not likely realise any profits for some time, while others point out that infrastructure to meet demand is not yet in place.Wednesday’s report from Nvidia — one of the torchbearers of the AI revolution — was therefore seen as a bellwether on the industry.And it topped expectations on fierce demand for its sophisticated chips, with chief executive Jensen Huang brushing off the recent concerns.”There’s been a lot of talk about an AI bubble,” he told an earnings call. “From our vantage point, we see something very different.”Shares in the firm — which last month became the world’s first $5 trillion stock — rose more than five percent in post-market trade, while S&P 500 and Nasdaq futures also soared. In Asia, tech firms led the gains. South Korea’s Samsung and SK hynix, Taiwan’s TSMC and Japanese investment giant SoftBank all enjoyed a strong day. Among broader markets, Tokyo briefly jumped more than four percent, while Seoul and Taipei were more than two percent higher.Hong Kong, Shanghai, Sydney, Singapore, Wellington and Jakarta were also well up.However, SPI Asset Management’s Stephen Innes said: “Nvidia’s latest forecast has, for now, dulled the sharpest edges of the AI-bubble anxiety that had gripped global markets.”But make no mistake: this is still a market balancing on a wire stretched between AI euphoria and debt-filled reality. “Nvidia’s results may have bought the tape a reprieve, but they haven’t rewritten the script — they’ve simply reminded traders why they still cling to the idea that one last Santa-rally can be extracted from the AI supercycle.”The reading helped offset minutes from the Fed’s October policy meeting suggesting officials are against cutting rates for the third time in a row next month.Bets on a string of reductions going into 2026 have been part of the driver of this year’s stocks rally — helped by a softening labour market — but the persistence of big price gains has started to take a toll.”Many participants suggested that, under their economic outlooks, it would likely be appropriate to keep the target range unchanged for the rest of the year,” the minutes said.Fed boss Jerome Powell said shortly after last month’s decision that another move in December was “not a foregone conclusion”.Meanwhile, investors are awaiting the release Thursday of US jobs data for September, which was delayed by the government shutdown. But the Bureau of Labor Statistics said it would not publish its October figures, instead rolling them into November’s full report on December 16.But Rodrigo Catril at National Australia Bank said: “The question that follows is whether there will be enough information in December for Fed officials to make a decision.”He said the removal of the October report “leaves policymakers without a key piece of evidence for the December (policy meeting), prompting traders to sharply scale back expectations for a rate cut next month” to just 28 percent.The pullback in US rate cut expectations saw the dollar rally, hitting 157.47 yen, its strongest since January.The yen was already under pressure from concerns about Japan’s fiscal outlook ahead of the expected release of a stimulus package by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi. Worries that she will push for more borrowing have hit the currency and sent bond yields to record highs.- Key figures at around 0230 GMT -Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 3.1 percent at 50,025.10 (break)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: UP 0.2 percent at 25,886.11Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.3 percent at 3,956.42Dollar/yen: UP at 157.10 yen from 157.01 yen on WednesdayEuro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1516 from $1.1526Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3038 from $1.3048Euro/pound: DOWN at 88.31 from 88.33 penceWest Texas Intermediate: UP 0.5 percent at $59.71 per barrelBrent North Sea Crude: UP 0.3 percent at $63.72 per barrelNew York – Dow: UP 0.1 percent at 46,138.77 (close)London – FTSE 100: DOWN 0.5 percent at 9,507.41 (close)

Nvidia shares climbed Wednesday after it beat quarterly earnings expectations on fierce demand for its sophisticated chips that power artificial intelligence.The solid results come amid increasing talk among Wall Street analysts of an AI bubble, with all eyes on how Nvidia, the industry’s bellwether company, will weather the doubts.”There’s been a lot of talk about an AI bubble,” Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang said on an earnings call.”From our vantage point, we see something very different.”Jensen reasoned that companies around the world are shifting from classical computing machines and software relying on CPUs to AI-infused systems needing graphics processing units (GPUs) that are Nvidia’s specialty.Add to that software programs rapidly adapting to the AI age and a trend of AI “agents” capable of independently tending to computer work, according to Jensen.”Nvidia is chosen because our singular architecture enables all three transitions across every phase of AI,” Jensen said.”Our customer financing is up to them. We see opportunity to grow for quite some time.”AI is already paying off for internet giants in the form of improved recommendation engines and efficiencies, according to Jensen.”The internet has trillions of pieces of content,” Jensen said.”How could they possibly figure out what to put in front of you and your tiny screen, unless they have really sophisticated recommender systems to do so well — that has gone generative AI.”AI industry rivals have been pouring billions of dollars into Nvidia’s prized GPUs to power the technology despite questions regarding how the investments will pay off.Wedbush analyst Dan Ives referred to Nvidia earnings as a “pop the champagne” moment for the tech sector and a sign that worries of an AI bubble are overstated.- China sales stalled -Nvidia reported profit of $31.9 billion on record-high quarterly revenue of $57 billion, sending shares up more than 5 percent.It also took in some 60 percent more money in the quarter than it did during the same period the prior year, according to earnings figures.”Blackwell sales are off the charts, and cloud GPUs are sold out,” Huang said, referring to the latest model of its state-of-the-art hardware.”The AI ecosystem is scaling fast — with more new foundation model makers, more AI startups, across more industries, and in more countries.”Revenue in the current quarter is expected to be $65.0 billion, nearly $3 billion more than forecast by Wall Street analysts.Most of the money brought in during the recently ended quarter came from Nvidia’s unit devoted to GPUs for data centers.Nvidia was valued at more than $4.5 trillion based on the number of outstanding shares.In the period, Nvidia announced strategic partnerships with OpenAI to deploy at least 10 gigawatts of systems for next-generation AI infrastructure, while Anthropic will adopt one gigawatt of compute capacity using Nvidia’s latest systems.Nvidia is caught up in President Donald Trump’s trade war with China, where Beijing has responded by expressing national security concerns about Nvidia chips and urging Chinese businesses to rely on local suppliers instead.Sales of H-20 GPUs, which are designed for the Chinese market due to US restrictions on exports of AI chips to that country, tallied only $50 million in the quarter, according to chief financial officer Colette Kress.”Sizable purchase orders never materialized in the quarter due to geopolitical issues and the increasingly competitive market in China,” Kress said on an earnings call.”To establish a sustainable leadership position in AI computing, America must win the support of every developer and be the platform of choice for every commercial business, including those in China.”

Stocks steadied Wednesday following heavy losses as investors awaited Nvidia earnings for further clues about whether AI-fueled valuations are justified.The S&P 500 and Nasdaq rose in New York, while most European stock markets closed marginally lower. Oil prices slumped, while Bitcoin slipped below $90,000 and the dollar strengthened.”The selling pressure had moderated from Monday (but) investors were unwilling to add to their overall exposure ahead of tonight’s earnings update from chip giant Nvidia,” said David Morrison, senior market analyst at Trade Nation.Investors have endured a tough November as speculation grew that the tech-led rally this year may have gone too far, and valuations have become frothy enough to warrant a stiff correction.With the Magnificent Seven — also including Amazon, Meta, Alphabet and Apple — powering recent record highs on Wall Street, there are worries that a change in sentiment could have huge ripple effects on markets.Chip giant Nvidia is the biggest of the bunch, last month becoming the first $5-trillion company. It will report third-quarter results after the market shuts.”The slightest bit of news to disappoint investors has the potential to whip up a tornado across global markets,” said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell.Nvidia shares closed 2.9 percent higher in New York before the release of its report.Investors are nervous that any sign of weakness could be the pin that pops the artificial intelligence bubble, having spent months fearing that the hundreds of billions invested may have been excessive.A Bank of America survey of fund managers found that more than half thought AI stocks were already in a bubble and 45 percent thought that to be the biggest “tail risk” to markets, more so than inflation.That came after the BBC released an interview with the head of Google’s parent company Alphabet — Sundar Pichai — who warned every company would be hit if the AI bubble were to burst.Investors on Wednesday also digested meeting minutes from the Federal Reserve’s late-October gathering, which showed “many” officials leaning towards keeping interest rates unchanged in December.Such an outcome would likely anger US President Donald Trump, however, who said Wednesday that he would “love to fire” Fed Chair Jerome Powell.Meanwhile, US retailer Target blamed sluggish consumer spending for its disappointing report early Wednesday and more indications of the state of the real economy will come from Walmart’s earnings expected Thursday morning. Target shares were down 2.8 percent.In Paris, Air France shares were up 3 percent after officially expressing interest in taking a stake in Portuguese carrier TAP.Oil prices fell sharply as reports of higher US reserves outweighed any concern over Ukrainian attacks on Russian oil installations.- Key figures at around 2105 GMT -New York – Dow: UP 0.1 percent at 46,138.77 points (close)New York – S&P 500: UP 0.4 percent at 6,642.19 (close)New York – Nasdaq Composite: UP 0.6 percent at 22,564.23 (close)London – FTSE 100: DOWN 0.5 percent at 9,507.41 (close)Paris – CAC 40: DOWN 0.2 percent at 7,953.77 (close)Frankfurt – DAX: DOWN 0.1 percent at 23,162.92 (close)Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.3 percent at 48,537.70 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.4 percent at 25,830.65 (close)Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.2 percent at 3,946.74 (close)Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1526 from $1.1580Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3048 from $1.3146Dollar/yen: UP at 157.01 yen from 155.53 yen Euro/pound: UP at 88.33 from 88.09 penceBrent North Sea Crude: DOWN 2.1 percent at $63.51 per barrelWest Texas Intermediate: DOWN 2.1 percent at $59.44 per barrel

The Netherlands said Wednesday it had suspended its proposed takeover of Chinese-owned chip maker Nexperia in a sign of “good will”, a move China welcomed as a positive “first step”. The two sides are moving to resolve a dispute that erupted in September when the Dutch government effectively took control of Nexperia, which is based in the Netherlands but whose parent company is China’s Wingtech.China responded by banning re-exports of the firm’s chips, triggering warnings from carmakers that their factories could grind to a halt without the components Nexperia supplies, which are critical to onboard electronics.The Netherlands stepped back from its position after Beijing announced over the weekend it would exempt some chips from the export ban — reportedly part of a trade deal agreed by President Xi Jinping and his US counterpart Donald Trump.Dutch Economy Minister Vincent Karremans said Wednesday that “in light of recent developments” he considered it “the right moment to take a constructive step by suspending my order under the Goods Availability Law regarding Nexperia”.It was the first time the Dutch had invoked the Goods Availability Law — a Cold War-era law designed to keep vital supplies flowing during wartime.”China welcomes the Dutch side’s initiative to suspend the administrative order, considering it the first step in the right direction towards properly resolving the issue,” a commerce ministry spokesperson said in a statement.The takeover has been suspended rather than cancelled, and the minister can reinstate the measure later.- National security -The dispute between China and the Netherlands is part of a wider global battle for control of the supply of semiconductors, the tiny components used across many industries and electronic products.Karremans said the Netherlands was “positive” about China’s recent moves to ensure chip supply to Europe and the rest of the world.”We see this as a show of good will,” he said of his move to suspend the takeover, vowing to continue talking to Chinese officials.The move was welcomed around Europe, with EU trade commissioner Maros Sefcovic saying it was “another key step in stabilising our strategic chip supply chains”.Germany, a global centre for car making, also approved, with an economy ministry spokeswoman telling reporters in Berlin that “the situation is easing”.However, China’s commerce ministry spokesperson warned there was “still a gap in addressing the root cause of the turbulence and chaos in the global semiconductor supply chain”.The Netherlands had argued that poor management at Nexperia, which was once part of Dutch electronics giant Philips but bought out by Wingtech in 2018, risked jeopardising the chip supply chain in Europe.An Amsterdam corporate court subsequently ordered the suspension of Nexperia’s chief executive Zhang Xuezheng, citing poor leadership and poor preparation for incoming US trade restrictions.The decision drew Beijing’s wrath and Wingtech stressed that Wednesday’s move had not fully restored the Chinese firm’s control over Nexperia.The firm is no stranger to regulatory concerns in the West.The United States put Wingtech on one of its “entity lists” last December, meaning the government believed it was acting against US national security and foreign policy interests.

Faced with the explosive growth of online shopping platforms like Shein and Temu, the EU executive said on Wednesday it was time to reform consumer protection rules to match the new reality in e-commerce.”We must ensure that EU consumer law continues to provide strong protection, safeguarding consumer autonomy and freedom of choice,” EU commissioner Michael McGrath said.The European Union has become increasingly concerned about Chinese-founded platforms flooding the 27-nation bloc’s market with cheap products, some of which it believes are not following labour, competition and green rules.The European Commission has said it will propose a draft law next year that would seek to tackle the issues.The legislation “will address practices that often manipulate consumers, making them spend more time online and more money than they originally intended”.European consumer rights umbrella group BEUC said the proposal would empower consumers “in making more informed choices in the real world or online”.The EU’s consumer strategy presented on Wednesday seeks to promote sustainable consumption and prevent planned obsolescence, which is when companies programme products to become out of date after a certain period.These are all ideas that “emphasise the right priorities” but still lack ambition, Green MEP Anna Cavazzini said.

Stocks recovered slightly Wednesday following heavy losses as investors awaited Nvidia earnings for further clues about whether AI-fuelled valuations are justified.Most of the main indexes in New York and Europe were higher, though London was lower. Bitcoin held above $90,000, the dollar strengthened and oil prices dropped. “The selling pressure had moderated from Monday (but) investors were unwilling to add to their overall exposure ahead of tonight’s earnings update from chip giant Nvidia,” said David Morrison, senior market analyst at Trade Nation.Investors have endured a tough November as speculation has grown that the tech-led rally this year may have gone too far, and valuations have become frothy enough to warrant a stiff correction.With the Magnificent Seven — including Amazon, Meta, Alphabet and Apple — powering recent record highs on Wall Street, there are worries that a change in sentiment could have huge ripple effects on markets.Chip giant Nvidia is the biggest of the bunch, last month becoming the first $5-trillion company, and will report third-quarter results after the market shuts. “The slightest bit of news to disappoint investors has the potential to whip up a tornado across global markets,” said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell.Nvidia shares were up 2 percent in morning trading in New York.Wall Street’s S&P 500 has dropped four days in a row, with investors nervous that any sign of weakness could be the pin that pops the artificial intelligence bubble, having spent months fearing that the hundreds of billions invested may have been excessive.A Bank of America survey of fund managers found that more than half thought AI stocks were already in a bubble and 45 percent thought that that was the biggest “tail risk” to markets, more so than inflation.That came after the BBC released an interview with the head of Google’s parent company Alphabet — Sundar Pichai — who warned every company would be impacted if the AI bubble were to burst.Investors will also be looking at the Federal Reserve’s release later Wednesday of its minutes from its late October meeting for clues on the direction of interest rates. In Paris, Air France shares were up 2.4 percent after officially expressing interest in taking a stake in Portuguese carrier TAP.Oil prices were lower as reports of higher US reserves outweighed any concern over Ukrainian attacks on Russian oil installations.- Key figures at around 1440 GMT -New York – Dow: UP LESS THAN 0.1 percent at 46,105 New York – S&P 500: UP 0.3 percent at 6,636.64 New York – Nasdaq Composite: UP 0.5 percent at 22,547.87 London – FTSE 100: DOWN 0.2 percent at 9,529.57 pointsParis – CAC 40: UP 0.2 percent at 7,980.77Frankfurt – DAX: UP 0.4 percent at 23,282.92Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.3 percent at 48,537.70 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.4 percent at 25,830.65 (close)Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.2 percent at 3,946.74 (close)Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1565 from $1.1580Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3114 from $1.3146Dollar/yen: UP at 156.37 yen from 155.53 yen on TuesdayEuro/pound: UP at 88.20 from 88.09 penceBrent North Sea Crude: DOWN 2.6 percent at $63.23 per barrelWest Texas Intermediate: DOWN 2.6 percent at $59.15 per barrel

China will suspend Japanese seafood imports, media in Tokyo reported Wednesday as a row sparked by comments about Taiwan deepens, although neither government confirmed the move.The uneasy neighbours’ most serious spat since 2012 was triggered by new Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi suggesting on November 7 that Tokyo could intervene militarily in any attack on Taiwan.China, which claims Taiwan as part of its territory, has been furious, summoning Tokyo’s ambassador and advising its citizens against travel to Japan.The release of at least two Japanese movies will also be postponed in China, according to state media.Reporting the suspension of seafood imports, Japanese media, including public broadcaster NHK, cited unnamed government sources.China explained the move as necessary to monitor treated wastewater being released from the stricken Fukushima nuclear power plant, NHK said.China had only recently resumed purchasing some marine products from Japan following an earlier ban imposed after the Fukushima operation began in 2023.The UN atomic agency said the release of the equivalent of 540 Olympic pools’ worth of cooling water collected since a tsunami crippled the facility in 2011 was safe.But Beijing has accused Japan of treating the Pacific as a “sewer”.Beijing’s foreign ministry did not confirm the latest reported suspension when asked on Wednesday.Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning told a regular news conference: “Under the current circumstances, even if Japanese seafood were exported to China, there would not be a market.”Japanese government spokesman Minaru Kihara also said there had been “no notifications from the Chinese side on this”.”It is important to follow through on the understanding shared between Japan and China in September last year (about seafood),” Kihara told reporters.In 2023, seafood shipments to mainland China accounted for 15.6 percent of a total of 390 billion yen ($2.5 billion), down from 22.5 percent in 2022.Hong Kong accounted for 26.1 percent, and the United States accounted for 15.7 percent in 2023.- ‘Strong protest’ -Key trading partners, China and Japan have seen ties frayed by territorial rivalries and military spending in recent years.China is the biggest source of tourists to Japan, with almost 7.5 million visitors in the first nine months of 2025.One analyst estimated that Chinese travellers have cancelled around half a million air tickets in recent days.”Recently, 90 percent of our customers (going to Japan) have asked for refunds,” Wu Weiguo, 48, a manager at a Shanghai travel agency, told AFP.”I think relations will be able to improve, as long as Japan can tone down their rhetoric… After all, there are a lot of Chinese people currently in Japan, including my cousin, who is married to someone there,” said his colleague Zhou Pei, 47.Japan on Monday urged its citizens in China to be careful of their surroundings and to avoid big crowds.Beijing on Tuesday vowed to “protect the safety” of foreigners in China, but said it had again lodged a “strong protest” with Tokyo over Takaichi’s comments.Seeking to defuse the row, the top official in Japan’s foreign ministry for Asia-Pacific affairs, Masaaki Kanai, held talks Tuesday in Beijing with his Chinese counterpart Liu Jinsong.”During the consultations, China once again lodged a strong protest with Japan” over “Takaichi’s erroneous remarks”, said Beijing’s foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning.”Takaichi’s fallacies seriously violate international law and the basic norms governing international relations,” Mao said, adding the premier’s comments “fundamentally damage the political foundation of China-Japan relations”.

Stocks struggled Wednesday to kickstart a recovery following the latest stagger across world markets that has been caused by worries over an AI-fuelled bubble and uncertainty over US interest rates.Rising tensions between China and Japan linked to a spat over Taiwan added to the dour mood on trading floors.Investors have endured a tough November as speculation has grown that the tech-led rally this year may have gone too far, and valuations have become frothy enough to warrant a stiff correction.With the Magnificent Seven, including Amazon, Meta, Alphabet and Apple, accounting for the majority of the rally to record highs for Wall Street’s three main indexes, there are worries that any problems with them could have huge ripple effects on markets.And so the spotlight Wednesday turns on the earnings report from the biggest of the bunch: chip giant Nvidia, which this month became the first $5 trillion company. Investors are nervous that any sign of weakness could be the pin that pops the AI bubble, having spent months fearing that the hundreds of billions invested may have been excessive.”The AI complex, once the undisputed locomotive of 2025’s rally, now sounds like an engine with sand in the gears,” said Stephen Innes at SPI Asset Management.”This isn’t a crash, or a panic, or even a proper correction; it’s the unmistakable sensation of a market trading at altitude with borrowed oxygen, suddenly aware of how thin the air has become.”He added that four days of losses in Wall Street’s S&P 500, the VIX “fear index” hitting 25 — a level that causes traders concern — and a tone shift were “all signs that investors are finally blinking at the speed and scale of the AI capex boom”.Meanwhile, a Bank of America survey of fund managers found that more than half thought AI stocks were already in a bubble and 45 percent thought that that was the biggest “tail risk” to markets, more so than inflation.That came after the BBC released an interview with the head of Google’s parent company Alphabet — Sundar Pichai — who warned every company would be impacted if the AI bubble were to burst.After a mixed start to the day, Asia mostly fell into negative territory.Tokyo was weighed down by simmering China tensions after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s comments on Taiwan, which have seen the two sides warn citizens about travel to the other.The row escalated Wednesday as media reports said China will suspend imports of Japanese seafood.Japanese investors are also concerned about the country’s fiscal state ahead of an economic stimulus package that has pushed government bond yields to record highs. Soft demand for the Bank of Japan’s latest bond sale added to unease among investors.Hong Kong, Sydney, Seoul, Singapore, Taipei, Wellington, Bangkok and Jakarta also fell but there were gains in Shanghai, Manila and Mumbai.London edged up as data showed UK inflation eased slightly in October.Frankfurt also rose but Paris slipped.Also in sight this week is the planned release of key US data, particularly on jobs creation, which will be closely read over for an idea about the Fed’s plans for interest rates.Investors have scaled back their bets on a third successive cut next month — weighing on markets of late — after a string of decision makers, including bank boss Jerome Powell, questioned the need for another as inflation remains stubbornly high.Bitcoin, which on Tuesday fell below $90,000 for the first time in seven months, remained under pressure from the risk-aversion on markets. The cryptocurrency has taken a hefty hit since hitting a record high above $126,000 at the start of October.- Key figures at around 0815 GMT -Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.3 percent at 48,537.70 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.4 percent at 25,830.65 (close)Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.2 percent at 3,946.74 (close)London – FTSE 100: UP 0.1 percent at 9,559.62Dollar/yen: DOWN at 155.50 yen from 155.53 yen on TuesdayEuro/dollar: UP at $1.1581 from $1.1580Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3141 from $1.3146Euro/pound: UP at 88.13 from 88.09 penceWest Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.5 percent at $60.44 per barrelBrent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.5 percent at $64.56 per barrelNew York – Dow: DOWN 1.1 percent at 46,091.74 (close)

Gaming giant Roblox Corp says it will roll out compulsory facial recognition or ID checks from next month for players wanting to access its chat features.It aims to stop under-nines from chatting without parental consent and to curb conversations between adults and minors online by placing users into six age bands ranging from under-nines to over 21s.The requirement for joining chats will launch in the first week of December in Australia, New Zealand and the Netherlands before expanding globally in early January, it said. “Roblox is the first online gaming or communication platform to require facial age checks to access chat, establishing what we believe will become a new industry standard,” the California-based company said in a statement released Tuesday.The new system will require users to take a photo of their face or use identification to verify their age. All players can undergo age checks now on a voluntary basis before it becomes a requirement, said Roblox, which is hugely popular with young players.Facial age estimations will be conducted by ID verification company Persona on the Roblox app, with images and video to be deleted “immediately” after processing.”Age checks are completely optional; however, features like chat will not be accessible unless the age check is complete,” said Roblox, whose platform allows players to create their own online gaming worlds.- Social media ban -The Roblox announcement comes weeks before Australia’s ban on under-16s joining social media such as Facebook, Instagram and TikTok comes into effect on December 10.Social media platforms that fail to take reasonable steps to detect and deactivate accounts held by under-16s may be slapped with fines of up to Aus$49.5 million (US$32 million).Roblox is among several platforms, including Discord, WhatsApp and Lego Play, that have been deemed to be exempt from the Australian social media law.But the Australian authorities have reserved the right to force excluded platforms to comply with the legislation if required. On paper, the ban is one of the strictest in the world.But some experts are concerned that the law will be merely symbolic because of the difficulty in implementing and policing online age verification.Tech companies have been critical of Australia’s ban, describing it as “vague”, “problematic” and “rushed”.New Zealand’s Prime Minister Christopher Luxon will introduce a similar bill to restrict children’s social media use. And the Dutch government advised parents this year to forbid children under 15 from using social media apps like TikTok and Snapchat.