Asian benchmarks slide, Kospi briefly halted after 5% plungePrecious metals tumble, silver falls as much as 10% before reboundingCryptocurrencies reverse losses in volatile tradeBy Gregor Stuart HunterSINGAPORE, Feb 6 (Reuters) -Global equities extended losses into a third day on Friday as a selloff on Wall Street intensified, with precious metals and cryptocurrencies gripped by wrenching volatility.MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan (.MIAPJ0000PUS) tumbled 1% to mark a second day of losses, led by a 5% dive for South Korea’s Kospi (.KS11) which triggered a brief trading halt shortly after the open. S&amp;P 500 e-mini futures (EScv1) slid 0.2% and Nasdaq e-mini futures (NQcv1) fell 0.4%.“Investors are questioning their commitment to the pillars that have underpinned markets over the past six months: AI, crypto, and precious metals,” said Tony Sycamore, market analyst at IG in Sydney. “This raises the odds of a deeper unwind.”Stocks sold off overnight on fears that new AI models may start to eat into the profits of software firms, with the S&amp;P 500 (.SPX) turning negative for the year as fears around the labour market grew.Layoffs announced by U.S. employers surged in January to the highest level for the month in 17 years, a survey from global outplacement firm Challenger, Gray &amp; Christmas showed on Thursday.Precious metals rallied off their lows but were still down for the day, with gold (XAU=) falling 0.1% at $4,764.43 and silver (XAG=) plunging as much as 10% before recovering. The white metal was last down 1.4% at $70.26.Cryptocurrency markets reversed losses after breaching several milestones in a $2 trillion wipeout on Thursday, with bitcoin (BTC=) surging 3.7% to $65,446.07 after earlier falling as much as 4.9% to a low of $60,008.52. Ether (ETH=) was last up 4.4% at $1,928.12, overturning an earlier 5.1% decline.The S&amp;P 500 software and services index (.SPLRCIS) dropped 4.6%, having shed about $1 trillion in market value since January 28, in a selloff dubbed “software-mageddon.”“You’ve seen a lot of these big crowded positions being unwound very, very aggressively and that’s led to massive flows,” said Chris Weston, head of research at Pepperstone Group in Melbourne. “We’re getting to a stage where we could see, later this year, casualties,” he added.“Certain businesses - not the Mag7 - but for some of the smaller businesses, the capital markets may not be so kind,” he said, referring to the so-called Magnificent Seven mega-cap technology stocks.Amazon (AMZN.O) shares tumbled 11.5% in after-hours trading on Thursday after it projected a surge of more than 50% in capital expenditures this year.The market is starting to bet on an increased likelihood of policy easing by the Federal Reserve at its next meeting, though most still expect it to remain on hold.Fed funds futures are pricing a 22.7% probability of a 25-basis-point cut at the U.S. central bank’s next two-day meeting that ends on March 18, compared with a 9.4% chance a day earlier, according to the CME Group’s FedWatch tool.The U.S. dollar index (=USD) , which measures the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was recently flat at 97.92. The yield on the U.S. 10-year Treasury bond was last down 2.8 basis points at 4.18%.The yen rallied 0.3% to 156.58 against the dollar and Japanese government bonds attracted buyers across the curve ahead ofSunday’s election.In energy markets, Brent crude (LCOc1) was last down 0.4% at $67.31.

Global equities continued to decline, with Asian markets experiencing significant losses, particularly South Korea's Kospi, which fell 5%. Precious metals also faced volatility, with silver dropping 10% before recovering. Cryptocurrencies rebounded after a major selloff, with Bitcoin rising 3.7%. Concerns over AI's impact on software profits and rising layoffs in the U.S. contributed to market fears. The S&P 500 software index dropped 4.6%, and Amazon shares fell 11.5% after a capital expenditure forecast. The market anticipates potential policy easing from the Federal Reserve.

- Global equities faced losses for a third consecutive day, with Asia-Pacific shares declining 1% and South Korea’s Kospi experiencing a 5% drop that triggered a brief trading halt.  
- Precious metals saw volatility, with gold down 0.1% and silver plummeting 10% before rebounding, while cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ether reversed earlier losses during a turbulent trading session.  
- The market is increasingly speculating on potential policy easing by the Federal Reserve, with futures indicating a rising probability of a rate cut in March.

GLOBAL MARKETS-Stocks tumble as AI rout deepens, cryptos rebound