New York, Jan 13, 2026, 14:34 EST — Regular session
- Pony AI shares dropped roughly 10% in afternoon trading, slipping below $16.
- Selling hits as investors adjust rate-cut expectations following December CPI data
- Attention remains on robotaxi expansion efforts and the Fed’s meeting set for Jan. 27-28
Pony AI Inc shares dropped sharply on Tuesday, falling roughly 9.8% to $15.66 in afternoon trading. This slide pulled the autonomous-driving company’s stock well under Monday’s close of $17.37.
The decline was significant since it targeted a high-growth stock sensitive to shifts in risk appetite and interest-rate forecasts. Tuesday’s data revealed U.S. consumer prices climbed 0.3% in December, marking a 2.7% increase from a year ago; core inflation, excluding food and energy, held steady at 2.6% year-over-year. 1
Traders pushed up expectations for an earlier Federal Reserve rate cut following the inflation report, though the outlook remains uncertain. “A disinflationary trend is gradually taking shape,” noted Seema Shah, chief global strategist at Principal Asset Management. 2
Pony’s drop outpaced the wider market. The S&P 500 ETF SPY and Nasdaq 100 ETF QQQ both slipped roughly 0.4%, but the KraneShares CSI China Internet ETF tumbled around 2.2%. Baidu shares also slid about 2.2%.
No immediate comment came from the company on Tuesday’s drop. The latest corporate news focused on expanding its partnership with BAIC BJEV to boost production of Level 4 robotaxis — self-driving cars that operate autonomously in specific zones. 3
Under the “Cooperation 2.0” plan, the companies aim to expand beyond a single robotaxi model, rolling out a broader lineup and targeting overseas markets including the Middle East and Europe. This move builds on earlier pilot projects. 4
Traders also keep an eye on supply in lightly traded growth stocks. A Form 6-K filed on Jan. 7 revealed December share activity, covering stock options exercised and restricted share units that vested under the company’s equity plans.
Pony AI, listed on two exchanges, set its Hong Kong IPO price at HK$139 per share last November. The company aimed to raise roughly HK$6.71 billion ($864 million), according to a Reuters report from that period. 5
The downside is straightforward to outline. Robotaxi deployments demand heavy capital, regulatory approvals drag on across different cities, and competition in autonomous driving stays intense—particularly if markets turn “risk-off” and start hitting smaller, volatile stocks tied to China.
Investors are now turning their attention to the Fed’s Jan. 27-28 meeting. The policy decision comes out on Jan. 28, followed by a press conference that same afternoon.
