An AI-driven selloff in technology shares dominated the week. From last Friday’s close to Thursday’s close, the Nasdaq Composite fell 4.41%, the S&P 500 2.99%, the Russell 2000 2.91% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average 0.48%, while the STOXX Europe 600 rose 1.26% and the FTSE 100 0.49% (my arithmetic from the closes below). This recap was written on Friday, November 6, 2026, at about 11:00 UTC (13:00 in Bucharest), before Friday’s European and US sessions had closed and before the US jobs report. The weekly figures therefore cover the four sessions from Monday to Thursday, as in last week’s recap, and Friday’s moves are shown separately as provisional readings.
How the main indices did: October 30 close to November 5 close
| Index | Close, Fri Oct 30 | Close, Thu Nov 5 | Change (my arithmetic) |
|---|---|---|---|
| S&P 500 | 7,580.07 | 7,353.73 | -2.99% |
| Nasdaq Composite | 25,437.00 | 24,315.00 | -4.41% |
| Dow Jones Industrial Average | 51,770.31 | 51,523.06 | -0.48% |
| Russell 2000 | 2,811.84 | 2,729.89 | -2.91% |
| STOXX Europe 600 | 646.75 | 654.87 | +1.26% |
| FTSE 100 | 10,729.78 | 10,782.66 | +0.49% |
Sources: the November 5 US closes are identical in AP via La Nacion (November 5, 2026, no time shown) and Capp Notes (page last modified November 5, 22:42 UTC), and the October 30 closes in Investrade (October 30, 20:14 UTC) (S&P 500, Nasdaq, Dow and Russell 2000 rounded to whole points) and Investomine (published November 1). The STOXX 600 close of 646.75 on October 30 is confirmed by Reuters via Business Recorder (October 31, 05:33 PKT) and Investomine, and 654.87 on November 5 by Capp Notes and Saxo Market Quick Take (November 6, 2026). The FTSE 100 levels are single-source (Investomine for October 30, Capp Notes for November 5), though the daily moves match Saxo and AP. I left out the DAX because Investomine gives last Friday’s level only as “roughly” 25,818. These are market-data summaries, not exchange files.
Rates, oil and gold
| Market | Fri Oct 30 | Thu Nov 5 | Change (my arithmetic) |
|---|---|---|---|
| US 10-year Treasury yield | About 4.93% (sources 4.91% to 4.94%) | 4.84% | About -9 bp |
| US 2-year Treasury yield | About 4.58% | 4.46% | About -12 bp |
| US 30-year Treasury yield | About 5.31% to 5.33% | 5.25% | About -7 bp |
| Brent crude (January contract) | $113.43 | $98.29 | -13.35% |
| WTI crude (December contract) | $104.12 | $90.52 | -13.06% |
| Gold (December futures) | $3,898.90 | About $4,095 (sources $4,088 to $4,098) | About +5% |
Sources: October 30 from Investrade (October 30, 20:14 UTC) (WTI, gold, 2-year yield), Investomine (published November 1) (Brent January contract) and our November 3 edition (10-year and 30-year ranges); November 5 from Capp Notes (page last modified November 5, 22:42 UTC) and AP via Times Free Press (November 5, 5:00 p.m. ET) (Brent $98.29 and the 10-year yield at 4.84%). Brent’s December contract expired on October 30 at $117.64, so I compare the January contract on both dates. The gold change is approximate because Thursday’s level differs by source and contracts may differ; yield changes are rounded.
Day by day
| Day | S&P 500 close (change) | Nasdaq Composite close (change) | Dow close (change) | Brent, January contract |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon, Nov 2 | 7,541.40 (-0.51%) | 25,164.32 (-1.07%) | 51,983.98 (+0.41%) | $104.77 |
| Tue, Nov 3 | 7,568.92 (+0.36%) | 25,372.01 (+0.83%) | 51,786.72 (-0.38%) | $103.60 |
| Wed, Nov 4 | 7,688.62 (+1.58%) | 25,736.51 (+1.44%) | 53,356.12 (+3.03%) | $94.62 |
| Thu, Nov 5 | 7,353.73 (-4.36%) | 24,315.00 (-5.52%) | 51,523.06 (-3.44%) | $98.29 |
Sources: our daily editions of November 3 edition, November 4 edition, November 5 edition and November 6 edition, which cite AP, Capp Notes, Stock Titan, TheStreet and Reuters; the Thursday row matches AP via La Nacion (November 5, 2026, no time shown).
The five events that mattered
1. The AI trade unravelled on Thursday. The S&P 500 fell 4.36%, its worst day since April 2025, and the Nasdaq Composite fell 5.52%, leaving it 11.9% below its record high from last month (AP via Times Free Press (November 5, 5:00 p.m. ET)). Nvidia lost 9.3% and AMD 17.3%, while AppLovin gained 31% after results (AP). The VIX volatility index jumped 69.66% to 28.18 (Capp Notes (page last modified November 5, 22:42 UTC)), and the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index fell about 12.3% (Saxo Market Quick Take (November 6, 2026)). AP’s explanation is that investors doubted the data-centre build-out, partly because of high borrowing costs and the possibility that governments could pause new data-centre construction after Democratic election wins (AP via Spectrum News (November 5, 11:16 a.m. ET)); these are press explanations, not confirmed causes. Overnight the Nikkei 225 and the Kospi each fell about 6% (our November 6 edition, citing Tokenpost, Investing.com and AP; levels differ by source).
2. The US midterm elections moved markets both ways. After Tuesday’s vote, the Dow jumped 3.03% on Wednesday to 53,356.12 and the S&P 500 rose 1.58% (November 5 edition), only for much of the gain to disappear on Thursday. I have not confirmed the final composition of Congress, so I report only the Democratic wins described in the cited reports.
3. Oil fell sharply, then bounced. The January Brent contract ended the four sessions 13.35% lower. It dropped about 9% on Wednesday to $94.62 on hopes of US-Iran de-escalation (our November 5 edition) and rebounded 3.9% on Thursday to $98.29 (AP), which some outlets tied to renewed war risk; I could not confirm that at source. Brent was near $100 early on Friday (Saxo). Saxo, citing Bloomberg, says its commodity index is heading for a 4% weekly loss, the worst since April 2025, with crude down 12% on the week by its measure.
4. Two central banks raised rates. On Tuesday, November 3 the Reserve Bank of Australia raised its cash rate by 25 basis points to 4.85%, with six board members for the increase and three for holding at 4.60% (Reserve Bank of Australia: Media Release 2026-30 (November 3, 2026)). On Thursday the Bank of England raised Bank Rate by 25 basis points to 4% in an 8-1 vote, with Catherine Mann preferring 4.25%, and said UK inflation was 3.5% in September and is expected to reach about 5% by mid-2027 (Bank of England: Monetary Policy Summary, November 2026). The Fed did not meet; the market-implied chance of a December Fed hike was about 70% on Thursday, down from about 83% on Wednesday (Saxo, citing market pricing; not a forecast by this site).
5. US data came in mixed-to-strong. Initial jobless claims fell by 6,000 to 189,000, and third-quarter productivity rose at a 3.6% annualised rate with unit labour costs down 0.7% (Saxo Market Quick Take (November 6, 2026)). Results added to the swings: AMD reported record revenue on Tuesday and rose after hours, then fell 17.3% on Thursday with the sector (our November 4 edition; AP).
Friday so far (not in the weekly figures)
At 08:10 GMT the STOXX 600 was down 1.6% at 644.72, which left it about 0.2% lower on the week, so Europe’s weekly gain had been wiped out at that time (Reuters via Business Recorder (November 6, data as of 08:10 GMT)); Teleperformance fell 18% after cutting its revenue outlook. These are early readings that will change by the close. The main event is the US October jobs report at 13:30 UTC (08:30 ET): the unemployment rate is expected at 4.2% and payrolls at roughly +55,000 to +65,000 depending on the source, against +29,000 in September, and options priced a move of about 1.49% in the S&P 500 on the release (Saxo Market Quick Take (November 6, 2026); Yahoo Finance live blog (November 6, 2:00 a.m. PST)). Friday’s closes will change the weekly numbers above.
Next week: the calendar
| Day | Data and central banks | Earnings (per Saxo) |
|---|---|---|
| Mon, Nov 9 | No major scheduled release found in my sources | KKR, Constellation Energy |
| Tue, Nov 10 | US October CPI, 8:30 a.m. ET | SoftBank Group, Infineon |
| Wed, Nov 11 | MSCI index decision (per Saxo) | Siemens Energy, E.ON, RWE |
| Thu, Nov 12 | Not confirmed in my sources | Cisco, Applied Materials, Siemens, Allianz, Enel, Brookfield, Merck, Nu Holdings |
Sources: the CPI date and time are from the Bureau of Labor Statistics: CPI release schedule; the company list is from Saxo Market Quick Take (November 6, 2026). One calendar site lists Cisco’s report on Tuesday after the US close, so check each company’s investor-relations page for the exact date and time. None of the decisions I checked falls next week: the next Fed meeting is December 8-9 (Fed calendar) and the next Bank of England decision is on December 17 (Bank of England).
Sources
- Bank of England: Monetary Policy Summary, November 2026
- Reserve Bank of Australia: Media Release 2026-30 (November 3, 2026)
- Bureau of Labor Statistics: CPI release schedule
- Federal Reserve: FOMC meeting calendar
- Market-data summaries and news, not primary sources: AP via La Nacion (November 5, 2026, no time shown); AP via Times Free Press (November 5, 5:00 p.m. ET); AP via Spectrum News (November 5, 11:16 a.m. ET); Capp Notes (page last modified November 5, 22:42 UTC); Investrade (October 30, 20:14 UTC); Investomine (published November 1); Reuters via Business Recorder (October 31, 05:33 PKT); Reuters via Business Recorder (November 6, data as of 08:10 GMT); Saxo Market Quick Take (November 6, 2026); Yahoo Finance live blog (November 6, 2:00 a.m. PST). Daily closes for Monday to Wednesday come from our own daily editions (November 3 edition, November 4 edition, November 5 edition, November 6 edition), which cite AP, Capp Notes, Stock Titan, TheStreet and Reuters.
Get new articles by email
Ex-dividend dates, earnings previews and P2P platform changes, straight to your inbox. Unsubscribe anytime.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice. Figures come from the sources listed, as of the times stated, and may be revised. Market-data summaries can differ slightly from official exchange figures. Confirm current prices with your broker. Investing involves risk, including the possible loss of capital.
