Bitcoin drops below US$90,000 as AI worries sour risk appetite

Cryptocurrencies tumbled on Thursday and bitcoin fell back below the US$90,000 threshold in a renewed signal of market jitters, as fresh concerns about artificial intelligence profits weighed on technology stocks.

Risk sentiment turned sour after US cloud firm Oracle’s profit and revenue outlook missed forecasts and executives flagged higher spending – a sign that AI infrastructure outlays are not turning profits as quickly as investors had hoped.

Bitcoin was last down 2.5 per cent at US$90,056.24, while ether tumbled 4.3 per cent to US$3,196.62, erasing the past two days of gains and extending the weakness that began in the US trading session on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve cut interest rates.

Stocks in Asia fell and futures pointed to lower openings in Europe and the United States.