Stock futures exhibited a mixed performance early Friday, following a significant sell-off in artificial intelligence-related stocks that had propelled the Nasdaq into correction territory in the prior session, with indications that losses may be recouped. Concerns regarding a possible deceleration in data center construction, prompted by the significant victories of Democrats in the House, Senate, and crucial state governorships, adversely affected U.S. markets on Thursday. On Friday, South Korea experienced the most significant declines in the Asia-Pacific region, driven by a downturn in semiconductor stocks, as the technology-centric Kospi index fell by over 6%. Japan’s Nikkei 225 experienced a decline of 5.9%, officially entering bear market territory. European stocks commenced the day with significant declines; however, the losses moderated by mid-morning as oil prices started to decrease.
Investors are still assessing the potential for a diplomatic breakthrough in the aftermath of the midterm elections. Europe’s Stoxx 600 tech index recorded an increase of 0.44%, driven by notable gains in major semiconductor companies ASML and ASMI, which rose by 4% and 3%, respectively. Nasdaq-100 futures indicated a rebound, last recorded at an increase of 1.7%. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined by 0.6%, whereas S&P 500 futures experienced an increase of 0.54%. A bout of heavy selling during Thursday’s regular session on Wall Street resulted in the three major averages recording their most significant one-day declines since April 2025. The Nasdaq Composite declined by 5.5%, finishing over 10% beneath its latest peak and entering correction territory. The broad-market S&P 500 experienced a decline of 4.4%, whereas the Dow witnessed a drop exceeding 1,800 points, translating to a decrease of 3.4%.
While all 11 sectors of the S&P 500 closed with losses, shares of companies associated with the AI build-out experienced significant declines. “The scale of the falls in some of the market’s biggest names has been striking. But it also highlights the concentration risk that has built up in U.S. equity markets,” Stuart Clark said by email. “With a relatively small number of technology and semiconductor stocks now carrying so much weight, weakness in those names quickly translates into sizeable falls for the Nasdaq and S&P 500.” Micron Technology and Advanced Micro Devices experienced a significant decline of 17% each on Thursday, while neocloud CoreWeave saw a decrease of 10%. Even the Magnificent Seven faced challenges, with Nvidia experiencing a 9% decline, resulting in a negative outlook for 2026. The collective market capitalisation of this group of tech giants diminished by over $1 trillion.
The three major averages are positioned for weekly losses, with the Nasdaq declining by 4.4% and the S&P 500 decreasing by nearly 3% during this timeframe. The 30-stock Dow stands as the relative outperformer among the three, declining only 0.5% week to date. Another market catalyst is set to present itself to investors on Friday morning with the release of the October payrolls report. The Dow Jones consensus estimate indicates that 59,000 jobs were added last month, with the unemployment rate expected to remain stable at 4.2%.
