{
  "id": 9272436,
  "title": "AI trade outlook brightens on falling oil and Meta’s Muse agent ahead of Xi-Trump meeting",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/23/ai-trade-outlook-brightens-on-falling-oil-and-metas-muse-agent-ahead",
  "topic": "ai",
  "section": "AI",
  "published": "2026-09-23T05:02:40.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "South China Morning Post",
    "slug": "south-china-morning-post",
    "url": "https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3368470/ai-trade-outlook-brightens-falling-oil-and-metas-muse-agent-ahead-xi-trump-meeting"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The global AI trade is experiencing a resurgence, driven by a combination of falling oil prices, Meta Platforms' introduction of a new agentic tool called Muse, and growing expectations surrounding an upcoming China-US leadership summit. The Nasdaq-100 Index reached a record high on Tuesday, surpassing its previous peak set in June. In Asia, China's Star Market 50 Index and South Korea's Kospi gauge, both heavily focused on memory chipmakers, have rebounded since July's sell-offs. This positive trend appears to signal a shift in sentiment towards artificial intelligence stocks, which had previously suffered due to inflationary concerns and calls for slower AI model development from some US tech companies. As oil prices fell below $100 a barrel, easing inflationary pressure, Meta's Muse agent has reinforced demand in AI supply chains. Positive diplomatic overtures ahead of the Xi-Trump meeting have also fueled optimism for reduced geopolitical tensions. Stephen Innes, managing partner at SPI Asset Management, noted that lower oil prices and interest rates have revived the duration trade, while Meta's Muse agent story pushes AI beyond GPU-based compute towards inference, CPUs, cloud, and digital labor. The return of tech stocks to market leadership indicates that investors believe the AI sector will continue to generate resilient earnings growth, even after the recent U.S. Federal Reserve's interest rate increase. This increase prompted caution in non-technology sectors due to concerns about squeezed profit margins linked to higher financing costs. The drop in oil prices, coupled with diplomatic efforts to resolve the US-Israel conflict with Iran, has boosted risk appetite and alleviated investor worries about further Fed rate hikes. Crude oil prices fell for the sixth consecutive day after Trump reported that \"very good\" meetings had occurred with Iranian representatives. Meta's 11% share price surge on Monday further validated the AI trade following the introduction of its Muse agent, which automates digital tasks on a user's behalf. Muse downloads have surged, pushing it to the top of app charts. This surge in interest suggests that markets are viewing Muse as a confirmation of sustained inference and server demand, rather than just another GPU development. Investors are now focusing on the upcoming summit between Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump, hoping that the world's two largest economies might extend a tariff truce and reach agreements on AI advancement or even the Middle East conflict. According to Robert Gilhooly, an economist at Aberdeen Investments, preparatory meetings between US Treasury Secretary Scott Baessent and Chinese Vice-Premier He Lifeng indicate that some progress has already been made on trade. This could pave the way for lower tariffs on non-sensitive goods, as well as potential increases in Chinese purchases of US farm products, energy exports, and Boeing aircraft.",
  "summary": "The global AI trade is staging a comeback, as a confluence of falling oil prices, Meta Platforms’ launch of a new agentic tool, and anticipation surrounding the China-US leadership summit reignite interest in technology stocks. The Nasdaq-100 Index hit an all-time high on Tuesday, surpassing the previous record set in June. In Asia, China’s chip-heavy Star Market 50 Index and South Korea’s Kospi…",
  "key_points": [
    "Falling oil prices ease inflationary pressure, boosting AI trade optimism",
    "Meta's Muse agent gains traction, signaling shift from GPU-based to inference demand",
    "Xi-Trump summit meeting ahead, fostering hope for reduced geopolitical tensions"
  ],
  "editors_take": "Falling oil prices and Meta's Muse agent, coupled with optimism over the Xi-Trump meeting, have revived investor appetite for AI stocks, shifting sentiment towards resilient earnings growth in the sector.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 4,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "SCMP Business",
        "title": "AI trade outlook brightens on falling oil and Meta’s Muse agent ahead of Xi-Trump meeting",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/23/ai-trade-outlook-brightens-on-falling-oil-and-metas-muse-agent-ahead-9272768",
        "published": "2026-09-23T05:02:40.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "The Sydney Morning Herald",
        "title": "I gave my life over to Meta’s AI agent and was blown away",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/23/i-gave-my-life-over-to-metas-ai-agent-and-was-blown-away",
        "published": "2026-09-23T06:10:25.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "The Age",
        "title": "I gave my life over to Meta’s AI agent and was blown away",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/23/i-gave-my-life-over-to-metas-ai-agent-and-was-blown-away-9285589",
        "published": "2026-09-23T06:10:25.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}