Latest Developments

North America
Yahoo Finance

S&P 500, Nasdaq End Third Straight Week Lower As Investors Move Away From Tech, AI — AMZN, INTC, LLY, RBLX In Focus

U.S. stock indices ended lower on Friday, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq also closing the month lower after investors moved out of the tech and AI play after a host of third-quarter results failed to meet investor expectations and as bloated AI capex plans weighed on tech cash flows. The S&P 500 ended Friday 2% lower, the Nasdaq 100 fell 3.5%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average eased 1.1%. The Russell 2000, which tracks small-cap stocks, dropped 1.7%. The Nasdaq 100 dropped about 6.5% this month, its worst monthly performance since March last year. Retail sentiment on Stocktwits for SPY improved to ‘bullish’ from ‘neutral’, while it remained in ‘bearish’ territory for DIA and QQQ. Intel Corp. (INTC) plunged the most in over forty years after posting disappointing quarterly results and issuing a soft outlook due to weakness in personal computers. Revenue within its client computing and physical AI division dropped 5% year-over-year to $8.1 billion, making it the worst performer in the Nasdaq 100 this month. Core revenue streams across U.S. mega-cap technology firms — encompassing digital advertising, consumer demand, and retail platforms — are showing early signs of decelerating, even as collective artificial intelligence capital expenditures swell toward $750 billion this year. Earlier this week, Alphabet shares posted their worst day on record after missing third-quarter earnings and revenue expectations. “We’re moving out of the hopes and dreams phase of the AI trade and into the ‘show me’ phase,” Joe Tigay at Equity Armor Investments told Bloomberg. “Full order books are great, but investors want to see who can actually deliver.” Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN) has arranged up to $80 billion in supplier financing credit line as it prepares for aggressive infrastructure spending to power its artificial intelligence initiatives. Shares of Eli Lilly (LLY) and AbbVie (ABBV) climbed to new record highs on Friday after the pharmaceutical behemoths reported stronger-than-expected third-quarter earnings and raised their full-year 2026 outlooks. A potential merger between Tesla (TSLA) and SpaceX (SPCX) could face its biggest regulatory challenge in China, Bank of America reportedly said on Friday, citing Tesla’s dependence on its Shanghai factory and SpaceX’s ties to the U.S. defense industry. Bank of America guided investors toward mega-cap technology corporate bonds instead of equities as an investment opportunity. Michael Hartnett, chief investment strategist at BofA, noted that fixed-income instruments issued by the "Magnificent Seven" and other major tech players provide compelling value. Roblox (RBLX) shares plunged about 20% on Friday, putting the stock on track for its worst single-day decline since July, after the gaming platform reported weaker user engagement and issued a disappointing outlook for fourth-quarter bookings.

S&P 500, Nasdaq End Third Straight Week Lower As Investors Move Away From Tech, AI — AMZN, INTC, LLY, RBLX In Focus
North America
CNBC Finance

Norwegian shares surge 13% on earnings beat, guidance raise

Shares of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings surged 13% Thursday after the company posted better-than-expected third-quarter earnings and raised its outlook for the full year. The cruise line reported third-quarter revenue of $2.95 billion, topping Wall Street expectations of $2.88 billion, according to analyst estimates from LSEG. Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization was $937 million, which exceeded Norwegian's previous guidance of $874 million. Adjusted EPS was $1.12, exceeding previous guidance of 90 cents and outpacing analysts' expectations of 94 cents, per LSEG. Norwegian also raised its full-year guidance, citing its stronger-than-expected third-quarter performance. The company now expects 2026 adjusted EBITDA of $2.55 billion and adjusted EPS of about $1.70. The report said the company's bookings had "improved modestly" since its last report but remain below its optimal range. Norwegian said it will emphasize new marketing strategies, including the launch of a new marketing platform in January. It also said it anticipates that enhancements such as a new waterpark at its Great Stirrup Cay private island will support stronger demand. Also on Thursday, Norwegian announced that Chief Financial Officer Mark Kempa will step down after more than 25 years at the company. Meghan Montana, currently chief strategy officer, will take over the role starting Jan. 1. Get this delivered to your inbox, and more info about our products and services. Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes, and Market Data and Analysis.

Norwegian shares surge 13% on earnings beat, guidance raise
North America
Yahoo Finance

Nasdaq suffers worst month in over a year as AI nerves roil markets

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange on Friday, Oct. 30, 2026. Michael Nagle/Bloomberg/Getty Images Tech giants Stocks Tech news Investing See all topics Facebook Tweet Email Link Threads Link Copied! Follow Wall Street suffered a steep day of losses Friday after the latest tech earnings reignited concerns that massive spending on AI may not deliver the returns that investors expect. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 2.86% and the S&P 500 fell 1.82%, each suffering their worst day since June. The Dow fell 572 points, or roughly 1.1%. Just a few weeks ago, the Nasdaq and S&P 500 clinched record highs. But markets were rattled this month as concerns festered about higher interest rates, tech companies burning through cash on enormous AI spending and weaker-than-expected earnings and forecasts. The Nasdaq is now down 7.8% from its record high earlier this month and suffered its worst monthly decline since March 2025. The S&P 500 is down roughly 3% since its peak. Intel plunged 28.58% Friday, its worst day since 1974 and second-worst day on record, after issuing weaker guidance for the fourth quarter, citing weakness in the PC market because higher memory chip costs are hurting consumer demand. Amazon shares also dropped, falling 1.4%, following an earnings report that indicated further increases in AI spending while the company’s sales and profit results missed analysts’ expectations. This comes after shares of Alphabet — Google’s parent company — sank by more than 12% Thursday, wiping half a trillion dollars off the market value of America’s fourth-largest company. Investors were concerned about a slowdown in Google’s search advertising business and a ramp-up in AI spending. Alphabet shares fell another 1.4% on Friday, capping off their worst month on record. Investors’ concerns about the AI boom rattled other semiconductor chipmakers: Nvidia shares dropped 4.2%, while a closely watched index of chipmakers sank 7.2%. Alphabet, Microsoft, Meta and Amazon are collectively spending hundreds of billions of dollars on building data centers. After cheering on anything AI-related, Wall Street is getting more discerning about which companies are spending rationally and seeing tangible returns on investment. Friday was the final trading day of a bruising month for AI stocks as investors continue to scrutinize the enormous cost of the AI boom and demand evidence that those investments will eventually translate into profit. “We’re moving out of the hopes and dreams phase of the AI trade and into the ‘show me’ phase,” Joe Tigay, portfolio manager at Equity Armor Investments, said in a note. “Full order books are great, but investors want to see who can actually deliver, turn that demand into earnings and generate cash,” he said.

Nasdaq suffers worst month in over a year as AI nerves roil markets
North America
Fortune

In Brooklyn, a phone-free room of Democrats agreed a blue wave is coming — and debated the data-center identity crisis

I checked my phone into a pouch at the door of 100 Sutton St. in Greenpoint on Thursday night, along with about 300 other people, five days before the midterms. It was deep in the so-called “commie corridor” that runs from northwest Queens through northern Brooklyn, and the crowd for Newsreel’s “Midterm Mania” panel and campaign staff, consultants, organizers, founders and journalists were gathered: the people who make a living off the feed, spending a night without it. Chi Ossé, the youngest member of the New York City Council and a democratic socialist, got the first big reaction. “Make some noise, Brooklyn,” he said when he walked onstage. When he called for Democrats to come out against the war in Iran and part of the room didn’t clap, he had a ruling ready: “Everyone who’s not clapping is supportive of war.” Newsreel founder and CEO Jack Brewster had asked everyone who RSVPed, “What’s the one election question you want answered?” More than 150 answered, and the walls were covered in Post-it notes. Brewster set up the night’s last panel with his own: “Democrats are on track to win big according to polls, but they still cannot agree on who they are.” Over 90 minutes, the people onstage made his case. They didn’t agree on whether the party is socialist, or on whether data centers are a jobs program or a menace. They didn’t agree on what to do about AI beyond taxing it. What they shared was the goal of winning Tuesday, and the odds look good. The New York Times/Siena poll released Oct. 21 had Democrats up 10 on the congressional ballot and Trump’s approval at 36%. That leaves the party most likely to take the House without a position on the AI buildout that’s eating up corporate capital spending, at a moment when half of Americans oppose a data center within three miles of their home, according to the POLITICO Poll, conducted by PF Global. Ossé, who represents Bed-Stuy and Crown Heights, dropped a primary challenge to Hakeem Jeffries last year after the DSA wouldn’t back him. Forbes’ Isabel Togoh asked whether it matters if a progressive candidate calls himself a socialist. “The number one thing that I care about within our party is taking back this country back from the right,” Ossé said. “Whatever you need to do in order to do that at this point in time, you know, I do support that.” That covered Abdul El-Sayed, the Michigan Democrat who won his Senate primary with Bernie Sanders’ and AOC’s backing and has since insisted he isn’t a socialist. Whatever El-Sayed is doing, Ossé said, “is one that I support in order to beat this fascist, far-right government.” He also said he believes “the direction of this party will go towards democratic socialism.” On AI, Ossé said he doesn’t “really understand it that much” and barely uses it himself. He still had a plan for it. He’d call big tech and AI CEOs to testify before Congress and “maybe be put behind bars for a little bit,” and on Sanders’ proposed one-time 50% stock tax on the biggest AI companies, he said: “Cosign and tax some more.” The data-center panel was where the room was most united, and where the party’s own record looked shakiest. Moderator Dominic-Madori Davis of TechCrunch passed along what a private-equity executive had told her: “people are not upset at data centers, they’re just mad at AI.” Hilary Flint, who organizes against data centers in Pennsylvania for the Center for Oil and Gas Organizing, said the right tends to worry about eminent domain and the left about the environment, but “I’ve never seen people of all beliefs be on the same page about an environmental issue the way they are on this one.” The Pennsylvania Data Center Resistance group on Facebook now has over 44,000 members from across the political spectrum, she said. Maia Woluchem, who has tracked the buildout in the state for Data & Society, put data centers in “a long legacy of industrial obfuscation,” landing in towns that already have fracking wells in backyards and families living next to coal mines. Nationally, the environmental footprint is small. Data centers account for about 1.5% of global electricity demand and 0.5% of global CO2 emissions, according to International Energy Agency data compiled by Carbon Brief. In the U.S., they used 4.4% of the country’s electricity in 2023, according to a Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory report, a share it projects could reach 6.7% to 12% by 2028. The load is concentrated, though. In Virginia, data centers already use 26% of the state’s electricity, according to figures Carbon Brief cites. The Democrat running Pennsylvania has been on both sides of it. Gov. Josh Shapiro announced Amazon’s $20 billion data center investment in the state, per the AP. After “incredible pushback,” Woluchem said, Shapiro “tried to reverse that decision” a couple of months ago. Flint said activists have pushed the governor to the point of “saying we have the strictest data center laws in the country, which isn’t quite true, but we’re going to get him there.” Her plan for him: “We’re going to move him slowly until he reflects his constituents.” Morris Katz, a partner at Fight Agency and Mamdani’s lead media strategist, later offered Republicans the issue outright. “Republicans can feel free to have the pro-data-center lane if they’d like,” he said, adding that Trump-plus-25 districts are in play because of data centers.

In Brooklyn, a phone-free room of Democrats agreed a blue wave is coming — and debated the data-center identity crisis
North America
CNBC Finance

Honda warns 50% Canada auto tariffs would be catastrophic for industry

DETROIT — The automotive industry faces a "catastrophic" scenario if the U.S. and Canada cannot reach a new trade deal by the end of this year, an executive with Honda Motor warned Tuesday. President Donald Trump has threatened to double tariffs on Canadian vehicles and parts from 25% to 50% on Jan. 1 if the two countries don't reach a deal. "That really would be catastrophic for the entire industry," Jennifer Thomas, senior vice president of corporate affairs at American Honda Motor Co., said during a Reuters automotive conference in Detroit. Thomas said, ideally, the countries would also include Mexico in the arrangement and reach a trilateral deal, like the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA. Trade associations representing Honda, as well as every major player in the U.S. automotive industry, have been advocating for that more comprehensive accord and against bilateral arrangements between two countries. Her comments come months after U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer announced that the U.S. would not automatically extend the USMCA, moving the trade pact into an annual review process instead of a 16-year trilateral extension. Trump negotiated the USMCA to replace the North American Free Trade Agreement during his first term and it took effect in 2020. He later soured on it and accused Canada of "ripping off the United States of America for years." Thomas said she is "cautiously optimistic" that cooler heads will prevail to avoid the doubling of tariffs, which Trump threatened in August if no deal can be reached. She said she's encouraged by recent reports that the U.S. and Canada have reestablished trade talks, including easing levies on critical materials such as aluminum. "Our message has been clear: We need that trilateral agreement to stay in place in order for the U.S. industry to be competitive," Thomas said. "It's integral to our success." Honda is the second-largest producer of vehicles in Canada behind Toyota Motor, but many automotive officials have voiced concerns about the lack of a North American trade deal and tariff uncertainty due to the number of parts that regularly cross the borders for vehicle production. While Honda has established large operations in Canada, the company reports that more than 60% of the vehicles it sells in the U.S. are manufactured domestically across multiple U.S. assembly plants. "I never thought I would see the North American region be put at a disadvantage like this," Thomas said, adding that some overseas countries have better tariff rates.

Honda warns 50% Canada auto tariffs would be catastrophic for industry
North America
CNBC Economy

World Bank's Banga: Availability of capital 'not really an issue' as AI demand drives up borrowing costs

World Bank President Ajay Banga said on Tuesday that capital remained available despite concerns of artificial intelligence sending interest rates higher. Banga said the World Bank mobilized $112 billion last year, around three times the amount recorded three years prior. He said investors may be concerned about circular financing and the business model tied to AI. But Banga told CNBC that emerging markets are not running into the same hesitancy because the investments focus more on infrastructure like bridges and roads. These countries also look at smaller-scale uses of AI, according to Banga. Banga said developed counterparts look to funding to support large use cases, which he described as the "exact opposite" need. The World Bank leader also said that the private capital it oversees does not go to governments. As a result, the organization can avoid fears of looming debt crises and challenges related to rising bond yields within some countries. "In general, I still believe that AI is going to be transformative and profitable," Banga said. "But everybody sees bumps in the road from here to there, and no one knows when the next bump will come." Banga's comments come ahead of a string of interest rate decisions from central banks around the world. Economists and monetary policymakers across the globe have been attempting to gauge how the widespread adoption of AI impacts demand for capital and employment. The financial institution, which was founded in 1944, aims to end poverty and support economic prosperity through global partnerships and funding. Before taking the top job at the bank, Banga was vice chair at General Atlantic and CEO of Mastercard. Get this delivered to your inbox, and more info about our products and services. Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes, and Market Data and Analysis.

World Bank's Banga: Availability of capital 'not really an issue' as AI demand drives up borrowing costs
North America
Fortune

What every CEO can learn from the collapse of law firm giant Weil Gotshal

Good morning. There are a lot of lessons coming out of Weil, Gotshal & Manges, the storied law firm that’s winding down after 95 years in business. How AI will disrupt law is not one of them. Nor is this a tale about crime, scandal, financial malfeasance, reckless accounting or any of the other perils that can fell a firm at this speed. Instead, this is a story about what happens when the departure of some key leaders sparks an outflow of talent that undermines the foundation of a business based on expertise, relationships, and trust. Some of the plot points that drove this sad narrative: A botched succession. Law firms are partnerships, which means the partners typically vote on who will serve as executive partner and establish the firm’s new direction in the process. As one leader at a rival firm told me yesterday: “Anyone who has an ownership in the firm normally gets to vote on key management decisions.” That didn’t happen here. Barry Wolf, who’s led the firm for 16 years, instead appointed corporate practice chair Michael Aiello to lead a committee tasked with identifying a successor and managing the transition. They picked Ramona Nee in March. By September, she told partners that she no longer planned to take the role. It was kept largely quiet and there was no Plan B. Then Aiello announced he and a team were leaving for Cravath, Swaine & Moore. Nobody seemed invested in finding a new leader. Employees are not family. Wolf prided himself on the loyalty of partners, saying he viewed the firm as family. I’ve heard other CEOs say that, too. But you don’t pay people to be in your family—unless it’s a highly dysfunctional one. These are jobs where individuals will stay as long as they see a stable, bright, and well-compensated future. If they’re loyal to anyone, it’s to the people they directly work with every day, which is why you often see entire teams relocate in sectors like banking and law. In a talent-driven business, talent is mobile and very willing to quit “the family” for a happier home life down the street. Revenue growth matters as much as profits. Weil Gotshal was not losing money, but its growth looked anemic when compared to some rivals, with the firm’s revenues doubling to $2 billion over the past decade while rival Kirkland & Ellis generated a fivefold increase to $10 billion. Weil Gotshal’s revenue grew less than 3% last year while the 50 largest firms grew more than 13% on average, according to Wells Fargo. Growing companies tend to attract ambitious and high-earning people. Revenue is what drives compensation and profits in a fixed-cost business like law. Firms aren’t using that capital to build data centers or new cars. The only infrastructure that matters is talent, and when the core pillars of that talent crumble or disappear, the firm goes down, too.Contact CEO Daily via Diane Brady at diane.brady@fortune.com Alphabet’s stock fell 12.6% Thursday, its worst day since going public in 2004, erasing about $482 billion in value. Investors were spooked by Google search revenue that grew slower than expected and heavy AI spending that pushed cash flow negative. Bank of America kept its Buy rating but now values Google search more cheaply than energy stocks. Amazon shares fell more than 6% after hours as heavy AI spending and weaker-than-expected advertising growth overshadowed a 39% increase in cloud revenue. Quarterly capital spending reached $75.9 billion, and the company’s holiday-quarter sales and profit forecasts also fell short of Wall Street expectations at their midpoints. On Thursday, a hacker stole about $6.3 billion in digital money from Binance, the world’s biggest crypto trading site in the largest crypto theft ever. Binance says the thief broke in through one worker’s laptop. Experts suspect North Korea may be behind the attack. Some stolen money is being frozen, but much may be lost. S&P 500 futures are down 0.98% this morning. The last session closed down 0.30%. The STOXX Europe 600 was down 0.15% in early trading. The U.K.’s FTSE 100 was up 0.13% in early trading. Japan’s Nikkei 225 was down 2.12%. South Korea’s KOSPI was down 3.48%. China’s CSI 300 was down 1.39%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was up 1.46%. India’s NIFTY 50 was up 0.40%. Bitcoin is down at $77k. Commentary: The AI payoff is real. The timeline is the problem by Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, David Siegel, and Stephen Henriques Grandson of Reese’s inventor says Hershey is selling a ‘total imitation’ of the candy recipe. The rest of the family insists it tastes the same by Catherina Gioino Mark Cuban says owning the Mavericks went from being about basketball to ‘about valuations’ and created ‘more stress’—it still made him $4.3 billion by Joshua Hong Which Gen Z will show up for the midterms: the socialist rebels or the ones who reelected Trump? by Nick Lichtenberg

What every CEO can learn from the collapse of law firm giant Weil Gotshal
North America
CNBC Economy

Fed rate hikes are coming, but not this week: CNBC survey

The Federal Reserve has considerable work to do. But it's not going to do it in October. That's the key finding in CNBC's latest Fed Survey of 30 fund managers, strategists and economists, which showed that 93% expect a pause at the Fed meeting taking place this week and 76% anticipate a rate hike at its next meeting in December. And more than half say the Fed will hike next year by an average of about two rate hikes. "Their hesitancy to raise rates is unfathomable after an extended period of monetary and fiscal generosity, with nominal GDP running 6-8%, and when the leading indicators of inflation are uniformly warm to hot,'' said Richard Bernstein, global head of macro investing at Janus Henderson Investors. A plurality of 40% say the Fed must slow growth below potential to solve the inflation problem. That compares with 27% who say the Fed does not need to slow the economy and 23% who say the Fed has to slow the economy only somewhat. The survey, which CNBC conducts before every Fed meeting, found that 70% see the inflation problem as broader than just the rising price of energy. The U.S. crude oil benchmark is forecast to be at $88 a barrel six months from now, up from $82 in the September survey, but below the current level of $101. Asked what the Fed should do at the current meeting, 30% said it should hike rates now. At least two Fed voters are expected by survey respondents to dissent from the decision to keep rates unchanged. "The aggregate demand data (probably north of 7%...) and the inflation data point to the strong need to hike rates,'' wrote John Ryding, chief economic advisor for Brean Capital, LLC. "The Iran War is intensifying, real wages are falling, interest rates are rising, and the AI-fueled stock market looks shaky," wrote Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics. "Inflation is high, but there's little sign it is becoming entrenched. This isn't the time for more Fed rate hikes. Amid numerous shocks and challenges — including high inflation, expected Fed rate hikes and a continuation of high oil prices — respondents still see economic growth remaining above potential, or the level of growth that doesn't lead to inflation or deflation. Forecasts of GDP for this year rose to 2.4%. They ticked down slightly since the last survey but still hover above potential at 2.2% for 2027. Growth in 2025 came in at 2.05%. Respondents in aggregate put the risk of the U.S. entering a recession in the next year at 26%, down from 29% in the last survey. The outlook for the S&P 500 stayed stable for this year at around 7,600 but moved down to 8,033 for next year from 8,274 in the prior survey. The index closed at 7,676 Monday. Unemployment is forecast to remain steady at 4.2% through the remainder of the year but rise to 4.4% in 2027. The Consumer Price Index is seen ticking down to 3.6% from the current pace of 3.7% in September but fall meaningfully next year to 2.6%.

Fed rate hikes are coming, but not this week: CNBC survey
Asia-Pacific
The Straits Times

Binance in talks for Malaysia licence after five-year absence

Regulatory approval would provide Binance a route to formally re-enter a market where it has faced restrictions for more than five years. Binance said it is in discussions with Malaysian regulators for a licensed business in the country, as the cryptocurrency exchange seeks a route back into a market where the authorities have blocked its website and applications. “We have been jointly engaging the Securities Commission Malaysia and Bank Negara Malaysia over the last ten months, on a licenced pathway to offering our products and services into Malaysia,” a Binance spokesperson said in a statement to Bloomberg on Oct 31. The world’s largest crypto exchange is in talks on the “viability and structure of licenced business model in Malaysia,” the spokesperson added, declining to give further details on the type of license it was seeking. Regulatory approval would provide Binance a route to formally re-enter a market where it has faced restrictions for more than five years. The Securities Commission ordered Binance in July 2021 to cease operating in Malaysia after the regulator found it was then illegally running a digital asset exchange. The orders included stopping all media and marketing activities, and restricting Malaysian investors from accessing Binance’s Telegram group. While the Securities Commission had removed Binance from its Investor Alert List in 2024, it added the exchange back to the list earlierin October without providing a reason. Binance this week suffered a security breach involving as much as US$6.3 billion (S$8 billion), the largest known crypto hack. It suspended withdrawals and pledged to cover all losses. While the full details of the Binance breach have yet to emerge, the incident comes amid growing concern about the risks posed by hackers in the age of artificial intelligence. Malaysian lawmaker Lim Guan Eng wrote to the Securities Commission in September, asking the regulator to probe if Binance’s peer-to-peer platform was facilitating ringgit transactions through advertisements listed under another currency denomination. His office distributed the letter on Oct 31 “in light of the recent Binance security incident”.

Binance in talks for Malaysia licence after five-year absence