Asia’s major equity indices closed Monday’s session with mixed performances, alternating between gains and losses, following a week marked by heightened volatility. Investors are bracing for a fresh wave of results from large technology companies, which could help determine whether enthusiasm surrounding Artificial Intelligence (AI) still has room to run.

The MSCI Asia Pacific benchmark index fell 0.18%, having just recorded its fourth consecutive week of losses — its worst such run since April of this year. In Europe, by contrast, Euro Stoxx 50 futures were pointing to an opening gain of around 0.4%.

Heavy capital expenditure by technology companies on AI infrastructure is set to be in sharp focus this week, with quarterly results due from Microsoft, Alphabet and Amazon. Investors are searching for signs of near-term returns to justify the substantial sums being deployed in the technology, at a time when US monetary policy is also commanding close attention.

“Global markets are gearing up for another important week,” wrote Nick Twidale, chief market analyst at AT Global Markets, in a note cited by Bloomberg. According to the analyst, the focus “should shift back to central banks and interest rates, after several weeks in which geopolitical news dominated market movements.”

Against the backdrop of recent losses and uncertainty in the technology sector, Goldman Sachs cut its forecast for South Korea’s Kospi index by 25%. The index closed Monday’s session down 1.46%, in an environment of pessimism that also weighed on other companies in the sector, particularly Chinese AI-linked listings.

Among the region’s major indices, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng and mainland China’s Shanghai Composite advanced 0.53% and 0.19%, respectively. Moving in the opposite direction, Japan’s Nikkei 225 retreated 0.8%, while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 edged up 0.17%.

In Brazil, following Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s victory in the second round of the presidential election, the Ibovespa index was set to open down around 16%. Flávio Bolsonaro had been the clear market favourite, with the Brazilian exchange having surged as much as 8% after the son of the former Brazilian president topped the first-round ballot — albeit without securing more than 50% of the vote.