US Stock Market Live Updates: AI Selloff Dow Jones crashes over 500 points as AI, telecom stocks tumble

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Dow Jones | Nasdaq | Stock Market Live: The tech-heavy Nasdaq edged higher amid stabilization in tech stocks while Dow Jones crashed over 500 points on Friday as telecom shares tumbled on concerns that SpaceX's entry in the sector could heighten competition and threaten their market share.

US stock markets traded lower on Friday a sharp selloff in AI-linked stocks, with concerns over heavy funding needs and rising AI spending weighing on sentiment. Telecom shares also fall on fears of increased competition from SpaceX.

Why US stocks are falling: Dow Jones crashes over 700 points as AI selloff, SpaceX fears hit markets

1 New Update

Lycia Therapeutics shares jumped 43% in their trading debut after the biotech firm raised $317.5 million in an expanded U.S. initial public offering. The San Francisco-based company sold 17.64 million shares at $18 each, hitting the top of its marketed range and granting the business a market valuation of $1.31 billion.

Founded in 2019 based on research from Nobel laureate Carolyn Bertozzi, the company will use the proceeds to advance its pipeline of early-stage treatments for food allergies and Graves' disease. Backed by life sciences investors including Versant Ventures and Venrock Healthcare, Lycia trades on the Nasdaq under the ticker LYCA.

Global corporate credit markets are flashing major risk-off signals as anxiety over technology debt and rising geopolitical tensions drive investors toward safer assets. Yield premiums on investment-grade corporate bonds jumped to their widest levels since May 2025, driven by fears over the massive borrowing needed to fund artificial intelligence infrastructure after Meta disclosed spending commitments reaching $825 billion.


Escalating Middle East conflicts, rising oil prices, and political uncertainty in France are further fueling market volatility. The sudden spike in borrowing costs and risk premiums has already led some major issuers to delay planned bond sales, raising concerns among investors that credit risk is undergoing a broader repricing.

Apple's new iPhone Duo has drawn long lines and rapidly sold out of limited in-store inventory, marking the company's biggest design change in nearly two decades. Despite a starting price near $2,000, eager shoppers crowded stores from New York to Beijing to secure the company's first foldable device, which features a creaseless screen design and enhanced multitasking capabilities.

Extremely limited initial supply and manufacturing complexities behind the advanced hinge technology have pushed new online order delivery estimates as far out as January. While high prices and component shortages pose potential hurdles, strong initial interest is creating an old-school launch frenzy for Apple, contrasting with more modest recent hardware debuts.

Fast-fashion retailer Shein has agreed to pay $100 million to settle a U.S. Federal Trade Commission investigation into delivery delays and customer service issues. The penalty, which eats up nearly half of the company's second-quarter profit, follows more than 12,000 consumer complaints filed since 2020 regarding missing packages, unfulfilled orders, and unhelpful support.


The FTC settlement adds to growing global regulatory pressures that have slowed Shein's rapid expansion. The company is already grappling with upcoming fee hikes on low-value imports in Europe, ongoing investigations over marketplace listings, and rising operational costs that have forced it to raise prices and reconsider its ultra-low-cost business model.

Hedge fund Squarepoint plans to take more than 40,000 metric tons of lead from London Metal Exchange warehouses to deposit elsewhere in the system for a lucrative rent deal, three sources with knowledge of the matter said.

Rent deals are arrangements under which LME-registered warehouses share storage income with traders that deliver metal to them.

While large withdrawals from LME warehouses can indicate strong physical demand, in this case the metal will stay within the exchange warehouse system. Such transfers can make it harder to gauge underlying supply and demand in a market that relies heavily on LME inventory data.

LME data shows cancelled lead stocks in Singapore, or metal earmarked for delivery, jumped 41,525 tons on October 21, taking the total to 71,450 tons , more than 20% of lead stocks in the LME system.

- James O'Day, head of equities at Citizens Bank

US telecom stocks declined on Friday after a report that SpaceX was seeking thousands of cell sites for a fourth wireless carrier, fueling concerns over fresh competition.


Elon Musk's rocket and space technology company was in talks to access at least 80,000 cell sites to build its wireless carrier from scratch, Bloomberg News reported late on Thursday, citing sources familiar with the matter.

AT&T fell 5.6% to a more than three-month low, Verizon lost 1.6% and T-Mobile shed 5%.

Germany's Deutsche Telekom, which holds an over 50% stake in T-Mobile, lost 3.2%.

The U.S. Department of Energy approved an emergency exchange of up to 400,000 barrels of crude oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to alleviate a supply disruption at Phillips 66's Lake Charles refinery in Louisiana. The release is intended to support the continued production of transportation fuels for regional markets following localized supply interruptions.


This emergency drawdown comes at a time when the strategic stockpile has already fallen to its lowest level since 1982. The reserve has been heavily depleted by recent withdrawals under President Donald Trump during the war with Iran, as well as earlier releases under President Joe Biden following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn expressed sharp concerns over Meta Platforms' proposed commercial terms update, warning that the changes could harm American businesses and creators. Blackburn, who chairs a Senate Judiciary subcommittee, cautioned that the new terms appear to grant Meta broad authority to scrape content from any website linked to Facebook and Instagram business accounts.

In response to growing backlash from digital advertisers and publishers, Meta announced it will delay implementing the updated terms until November 20. The company stated that the delay will allow time to address the mounting privacy and operational concerns surrounding the policy change.

President Donald Trump stated that the United States has the capability to finish the war with Iran quickly. However, he questioned whether Washington should seek a swift end to the conflict or simply let it gradually wind down over time.


Speaking to reporters on the White House South Lawn, Trump noted that oil is continuing to flow through the Strait of Hormuz. He added that the United States is currently getting everything it wants from the situation.

A wave of major U.S. companies will report their quarterly financial results during the week of October 26, 2026. The earnings heavyweights include technology giants like Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon, and Intel, alongside major industrial and consumer leaders like Boeing, Caterpillar, Coca-Cola, and Starbucks.


The schedule kicks off early in the week with reports from Verizon, Visa, and PayPal, followed by energy titans ExxonMobil and Chevron toward the end of the week. Financial firms, healthcare providers, and consumer goods companies will also release updates throughout the week, offering critical insights into corporate performance and broader economic health.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission is actively investigating unusual oil trading activity linked to recent Middle East tensions, according to agency Chairman Michael Selig. The enforcement probe centers on sharp spikes in trading volume, including a massive sale of 6 million barrels within two minutes just before President Donald Trump backed away from planned strikes on Iranian power plants.


Regulators are focused on whether non-public information was misused to execute profitable price bets during critical geopolitical moments. Selig assured that the agency takes oversight seriously to maintain market confidence, while also noting that the CFTC is closely monitoring prediction markets ahead of the U.S. midterm elections.

- Kim Forrest, chief investment officer at Bokeh Capital Partners

American consumer morale slipped to its lowest level since May, with persistent high prices and elevated interest rates continuing to weigh on household budgets. The University of Michigan's sentiment index edged down to 48 in October, driven by widespread frustration over expensive groceries, gasoline prices remaining well above $4 a gallon, and borrowing costs that continue to outpace income gains.

Both short- and long-term inflation expectations rose to their highest levels in months, sparking concerns that elevated price pressures are becoming entrenched. Buying conditions for durable goods hit a record low as nearly 70% of consumers anticipate further interest rate hikes, making the cost of living a dominant issue for Americans.

A sharpening selloff in AI-focused technology stocks has pushed anxious investors back into U.S. government debt, restoring the traditional inverse relationship between bonds and equities. Worries over the long-term payoff of massive artificial intelligence investments, along with a softer economic outlook, drove a major Treasury rally as traders scaled back expectations for further Federal Reserve interest rate hikes.

Although Treasuries later gave back some of those gains due to surging crude oil prices, the shift marks a key turning point for bond markets. Investors are increasingly turning to U.S. debt as a defensive hedge against potential economic deceleration, offsetting previous concerns over persistent inflation and elevated yields.

• Six additional companies, including Wells Fargo, Arm Holdings, and Intuit, have objected to having their shares tokenized on a joint trading platform created by OKX and Intercontinental Exchange. These additions bring the total number of objecting issuers to 22, dealing a fresh blow to industry efforts aimed at bringing 24/7 blockchain trading and instant settlement to traditional equity markets.
• The pushback highlights growing friction around tokenization despite recent regulatory backing. Under the Securities and Exchange Commission's new innovation exemption, trading venues must inform companies before listing digital versions of their stock and cannot proceed if an issuer objects, allowing firms to block their shares from entering the platform.

• The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission will prioritize artificial intelligence, private assets, and tokenized securities during its examinations of Wall Street firms in fiscal year 2027. This focus follows recent moves by the administration to widen access to private funds and credit for retail investors, as well as a new five-year exemption permitting blockchain-based stock offerings.
• While proponents point to higher potential returns, critics warn that everyday investors face greater risks, hidden fees, complex pricing, and illiquidity. As a result, the SEC's examination division will closely inspect investment advisers and broker-dealers to ensure these emerging technologies and evolving market structures properly protect investors and maintain market compliance.

The S&P 500 Energy Index climbed 1.9% to reach a record high. The surge came as crude oil prices rose nearly 3%.

U.S. Treasury yields held onto their gains after the release of the University of Michigan sentiment data. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note was last up 3.94 basis points, trading at 4.992%.

• A resurgence in oil prices has driven down stock and bond values, renewing fears of inflation right before the Federal Reserve makes its upcoming policy decision on interest rates.
• Brent crude surged past $115 a barrel as escalating violence in the Middle East poses a direct threat to global energy supplies.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 747.29 points, or 1.41%, to 52,120.69 in morning trading on October 23 on a sharp selloff in AI-linked stocks, while telecom stocks tumbled on fears that intensified competition from SpaceX could erode their market share.

LKQ was the biggest S&P 500 loser, tumbling 20.84%, followed by Moderna at 9% and Coterra Energy at 8.62%. Norwegian Cruise Line, GE Aerospace, Howmet Aerospace and AT&T also fell, while TransDigm Group and Deckers Outdoor declined over 4% each.

Crown Castle led S&P 500 gainers, rising 14.02%, followed by American Tower at 7.88% and SBA Communications at 7.16%. Cboe Global Markets, Omnicom Group and Roper Technologies also advanced, while ConocoPhillips, Berkshire Hathaway, ONEOK and Halliburton posted smaller gains.

Wall Street's main indexes opened lower on Friday as caution prevailed after a sharp selloff in AI-linked stocks, while telecom stocks tumbled on fears that intensified competition from SpaceX could erode their market share. Read more: US stock markets open lower

Oracle Corporation has announced a $1 billion investment designed to drive partner growth and accelerate AI-driven modernization for its customers. Over the next four years, the initiative aims to expand business opportunities and speed up digital transformation across its ecosystem.

The initial public offering market has softened modestly as macroeconomic uncertainty and market volatility prompt companies to reconsider the timing of their public debuts, Reuters reported, citing comments from the Nasdaq CEO.

Read More: Nasdaq CEO on IPO slowdown

Gold prices held steady around $4,024 per ounce after falling to a three-month low, heading for a 3.5% weekly drop. Silver, palladium, and platinum also sank to multi-month lows as all precious metals faced sharp weekly losses. Escalating Middle East tensions pushed crude oil to five-month highs, stoking inflation fears and dampening appetite for non-yielding assets.


Hotter inflation data driven by rising energy costs is forcing investors to scale back expectations for Federal Reserve rate cuts. Markets now largely expect interest rates to remain higher for longer, with strong odds favoring a rate hike by December. Investors are turning their focus to upcoming U.S. inflation metrics and European Central Bank decisions to gauge the next moves for global monetary policy.

Brent crude held near a more than five-month high amid Middle East supply concerns, adding to inflation worries ahead of the Federal Reserve's policy meeting next week. S&P 500 third-quarter profit growth is now forecast at 32.3%, up from 30.7% previously, according to LSEG data.

Investors are now turning their attention to the earnings season, with Microsoft, Alphabet and Amazon scheduled to report next week. Analysts said the concentration of these companies in major US indices means their results could have a significant impact on broader market sentiment and investor views on AI spending.

AI-related stocks swung sharply this week, with investors focused on CoreWeave's debt burden and the cost of financing AI investment. The Nasdaq fell nearly 3% on Thursday after gains earlier in the week reversed. Meta also declined nearly 8% after reporting its first cash outflow in more than a decade.

AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile fell more than 4% in premarket trading after a report said SpaceX was in talks with cellular infrastructure companies about launching a nationwide wireless carrier programme. SpaceX shares gained 1.5%, while telecom tower operators Crown Castle and American Tower rose sharply.

Wall Street futures edged lower on Friday as investors remained cautious after a sharp selloff in AI-linked stocks. Concerns over the sector's heavy funding requirements and rising AI investment costs weighed on sentiment. Dow futures fell 0.59%, S&P 500 futures declined 0.25% and Nasdaq 100 futures slipped 0.12%.