US stock markets close week with huge loses

By Gokhan Ergocun

ISTANBUL (AA) - The New York stock market ended the final trading day of the week with a sharp decline, driven by selling pressure on technology stocks following the release of corporate earnings reports.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 572.25 points, or 1.09%, to 51,770.31.

The S&P 500 fell 1.82%, or 140.32 points, to 7,580.07, while the Nasdaq Composite decreased 2.86%, or 747.73 points, to close at 25,437.00.

The Volatility Index (VIX), often referred to as the market's "fear index," jumped 14.53% to 19.70.

Over $1.7 trillion in value was wiped out from the US stock market in Friday's trading.

Mixed signals from the earnings reports of technology companies caused concerns regarding the profitability of investments in artificial intelligence.

Meanwhile, investors engaged in profit-taking ahead of next week’s congressional midterm elections, intensifying the selling pressure on the markets.

Amazon posted profit and revenue figures that fell short of market expectations; the company reiterated its forecast that capital expenditures for 2026 would reach approximately $220 billion. Amazon shares fell 1.4%.

Although chipmaker Intel’s profit and revenue for the third quarter exceeded expectations, the company’s forecasts for the fourth quarter failed to meet projections.

Intel also warned that the stagnation in the personal computer market is expected to persist; the company’s shares ended the day with a loss of approximately 29%.

Uncertainty regarding the returns on artificial intelligence (AI) investments dampened risk appetite, putting pressure on the shares of other tech giants.

SpaceX shares fell by 6.4%, while shares of Microsoft, Meta, and Alphabet each declined by 1.5%.

Among chipmakers, Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) shares dropped 11%, Broadcom shares fell 5.5%, and Nvidia shares declined 4.2%.

Meanwhile, shares of US energy giant ExxonMobil rose 2.2% following the release of its earnings report before the market opened today; Chevron shares also gained 1.8% after the company’s profit and revenue surpassed analyst expectations.

- European stocks end week in red

European stock markets ended the day mostly lower, excluding the UK, as the pan-European Stoxx Europe 600 index fell 0.36% to 646.75 points.

Britain’s FTSE 100 rose 0.07% to 10,729.78, Germany’s DAX 40 decreased 0.85% to 25,818.21, and France’s CAC 40 fell 0.01% to 7,969.42.

Italy’s FTSE MIB went down 1% to close at 49,500.97, while Spain's IBEX 35 fell 1.09% to close at 18,652.90.

Gökhan Ergöçün