LONDON/SINGAPORE: World stocks were facing a second straight day of falls on Thursday as a glitch in the AI rally and renewed fighting between the U.S. and Iran dampened the mood, while oil prices eased after Israel and Lebanon agreed a ceasefire.

Europe's bourses got off to a steady start as both crude and bond yields dipped, but Wall Street futures were pointing lower again and it had been a difficult session in Asia due to weakness in tech stocks.

Korea's stock market had fallen as much as 2.6%, while Japan's Nikkei 225, Hong Kong and Taiwan all ended between 1.4% and 1.7% lower following a 13% plunge in chipmaker Broadcom's shares in extended U.S. trading on Wednesday.

Not only had the firm's second-quarter revenue numbers missed expectations, but it left its long-range sales forecast unchanged, disappointing traders, who viewed it as a rare sign that a major AI chipmaker may be losing steam.

"You have had a bit of softness in equity markets following Broadcom, which suggests we need a bit of time to consolidate what has been a very strong rally," said Marlborough fund manager James Athey.

"It wasn't about hope and expectation, it raised the notion that demand for chips is not just going to expand exponentially into the future."