Arabic version: اختبار ديون الذكاء الاصطناعي يلوح في الأفق لأوراكل وعمالقة الحوسبة السحابية
According to Cnbc, concerns about artificial-intelligence debt have eased following recent volatility, but Oracle’s Investor Day and quarterly reports from Alphabet, Amazon and Microsoft will give credit investors fresh signals on spending and financing. Oracle is scheduled to hold its event Wednesday, while Alphabet and Microsoft report after the market close Wednesday and Amazon reports Thursday.
Meta Platforms’ announced $95 billion stock offering on Monday helped calm the market after its third-quarter negative free cash flow had pushed its credit-default swap spreads higher last week. Richard Cheng, head of Nuveen’s investment-grade corporate sector team, said investors had expected Meta to issue a large bond deal after earnings, and the absence of such an announcement supported tighter AI-related credit spreads.
Credit-default swap spreads remain wider over the past year, however, as debt issuance rises and free cash flow weakens across the AI sector. Meta’s spread was up 177% year to date, while Amazon’s had risen 129%. Alphabet and Amazon are expected to provide closely watched updates on capital-expenditure plans and free-cash-flow forecasts. FactSet consensus estimates call for Alphabet to report negative free cash flow of $2.3 billion and $55.2 billion in capital expenditures for the third quarter. Amazon is expected to report negative free cash flow of $9.9 billion and capital expenditures of $58.7 billion.
Oracle may be especially important for credit markets. The company has issued $117 billion in long-term debt and holds a BBB- investment-grade rating from S&P, the lowest investment-grade level above junk. S&P Global Ratings has also warned that balance sheets may not show the full scale of AI obligations because companies use off-balance-sheet arrangements involving data-center leases and chip purchase commitments. Despite repricing in credit markets, Cheng said the largest hyperscalers retain strong credit profiles, with investor attention focused on the path of capital spending and the debt supply needed to fund it.
