Nasdaq Slides Into Correction as AI Rout Wipes Out Midterm Rally; Gulf Markets Hold Higher and Muscat Gains - Modern Money Experts

Nasdaq Slides Into Correction as AI Rout Wipes Out Midterm Rally; Gulf Markets Hold Higher and Muscat Gains

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Nasdaq Slides Into Correction as AI Rout Wipes Out Midterm Rally; Gulf Markets Hold Higher and Muscat Gains

Takeaway: Wall Street’s midterm relief vanished in a single session. On Thursday the Dow fell 1,833.06 points (−3.44%) to 51,523.06, the S&P 500 334.89 points (−4.36%) to 7,353.73 and the Nasdaq 1,421.52 points (−5.52%) to 24,315.00 — the worst day for all three since 4 April 2025, with the Nasdaq moving into a correction of more than 10% from its recent high (AP; CNBC). AI and chip names led the slide: Nvidia lost more than 9% and about $440 billion of market value, Micron and AMD each fell about 17%, Tesla 10.8%, and the Magnificent Seven shed more than $1 trillion of capitalisation; all 11 S&P sectors finished lower (CNBC). After the bell, Airbnb jumped about 11% on a beat while DraftKings sank about 24%. Overnight, Asia sold hard — the Nikkei entered a bear market and Korea’s Kospi tripped circuit breakers — while US futures were mixed early Friday. Oil rebounded after Wednesday’s crash: Brent settled at $98.29 (+3.8%) and WTI at $90.52 (+2.7%). December gold futures settled at $4,113.50 (+1%). In the Gulf, most boards rose: TASI +0.56%, Qatar +1.84%, Kuwait All-Share +0.81%, and the Muscat MSX 30 +0.21% to 7,276.41. Today: US October payrolls at 17:30 Muscat time.

What happened

1) Wall Street Thursday: worst day since April 2025, Nasdaq into correction

  • Close (AP via Fox Business table; CNBC): Dow 51,523.06 (−1,833.06 / −3.44%); S&P 500 7,353.73 (−334.89 / −4.36%); Nasdaq Composite 24,315.00 (−1,421.52 / −5.52%). CNBC called it the worst day for all three since 4 April 2025 and said the Nasdaq had entered a correction (more than 10% below its recent high).
  • Breadth: all 11 S&P 500 sectors finished lower. Information technology fell 7.30% — its worst day since March 2020 — and the Technology Select Sector SPDR (XLK) dropped 8.04% (CNBC).
  • AI/chip rout: Nvidia fell more than 9%, wiping out about $440 billion of market value and leaving the stock down about 2.6% year-to-date; Micron and AMD each lost about 17%; Tesla fell 10.8%; CoreWeave about 10%. The Magnificent Seven group shed more than $1 trillion of market capitalisation on the day (CNBC).
  • The Wednesday midterm rally — when Democrats took both chambers and the Dow jumped more than 3% — was fully reversed in one session (CNBC).

2) After the bell: Airbnb beats, DraftKings misses

  • Airbnb rose about 11% after hours. Adjusted EPS of $3.16 beat the $2.85 estimate and revenue of $4.87 billion beat $4.75 billion (CNBC).
  • DraftKings fell about 24% after a wider loss (94 cents a share versus 39 cents expected) and a revenue miss (CNBC).

3) Friday Asia and US futures: Nikkei into a bear market, chips sold again

  • Japan’s Nikkei entered a bear market, down about 5.9% in early Friday trade (CNBC). South Korea’s Kospi fell about 6% to 8% and tripped circuit breakers (CNBC).
  • Chip and AI-linked names led the Asia selloff: SK Hynix about −8%, Samsung Electronics about −7%, TSMC about −9.6%, SoftBank about −11.6% and Advantest more than −12% (CNBC).
  • Early Friday US futures were mixed: Nasdaq 100 futures about +1%, Dow futures about −467 points (−0.91%), S&P 500 futures roughly flat (CNBC).

4) Oil rebounds; gold holds near two-week highs; FedWatch and payrolls

  • Oil (Thursday settle, CNBC): Brent rose 3.8% to $98.29 and WTI 2.7% to $90.52, recovering part of Wednesday’s roughly 8% crash as tanker attacks and Iran-related uncertainty kept a risk premium in the market.
  • Gold: December COMEX futures settled about 1% higher at $4,113.50 (CNBC). Spot gold was near $4,100.27 in mid-afternoon US Eastern time (CNBC).
  • FedWatch: CME FedWatch put the chance of a December quarter-point hike near about 66% in the gold-market context CNBC cited (CNBC). Some Friday payrolls preview blurbs put the figure nearer 70%.
  • Payrolls today: October nonfarm payrolls are due at 17:30 Muscat/UAE time (13:30 GMT). Dow Jones consensus is about +59,000 jobs with the unemployment rate at 4.2%, after a soft September print of +29,000 (CNBC).

5) Gulf equities: Thursday 5 November — mostly higher

  • TASI 10,095.42 (+0.56%) on turnover of about SAR 4.2 billion. Tawuniya and CGS rose about 10%; SNB gained about 1.6–2% and Al Rajhi about 0.8%; Aramco slipped about 0.3% and Savola fell 5.65% (SPA; Argaam; The Edge; Reuters via Business Recorder).
  • Qatar (QE) 10,065.85 (+1.84%), a fifth straight gain, on QR759.1 million of trading; QIB rose about 2.9% (The Edge; Reuters).
  • Kuwait All-Share 8,546.71 (+0.81%) on about KD82 million; Gulf Bank rose 3.37% (The Edge). This is the All-Share, not the Premier Market.
  • UAE and Bahrain: Abu Dhabi (ADX) 9,519.82 (+0.62%); Dubai (DFM) 6,042.65 (+0.03%); Bahrain 1,815.75 (−0.08%) (The Edge).

6) Muscat Stock Exchange: Thursday 5 November

  • MSX 30 at 7,276.41 (+15.28 / +0.21%). Value traded jumped to OMR51.72 million (+84%), and market capitalisation was about OMR38.76 billion. Of 69 traded issues, 31 rose, 13 fell and 25 were unchanged. Non-Omani investors were net sellers of about OMR2.03 million (U Capital; Marsad/Oman Daily; Decypha; The Edge).
  • Top gainers: Raysut Cement +16.79% to 153 baisa, Barka Desalination +9.80% to 168 baisa, Sohar Power +6.94% to 262 baisa, National Finance +5.80% to 219 baisa and Dhofar International Development and Investment +4.17% to 275 baisa (Marsad/Oman Daily; U Capital).
  • Top losers: Musandam Power −9.94% to 299 baisa, Salalah Port Services −9.87% to 475 baisa, Oman and Emirates Holding −3.85% to 100 baisa, Tajir Finance −2.83% to 103 baisa and Muscat City Desalination −2.20% to 89 baisa (Marsad/Oman Daily).
  • Where the money went: Voltamp Energy led with OMR16.15 million (about 31% of value), followed by Omantel (OMR7.20 million), OQ Base Industries Free Zone Salalah (OMR5.29 million), Ooredoo (OMR4.59 million) and OQ Gas Networks (OMR4.28 million) (Marsad).

Why it matters for Gulf + US-focused Arab traders

  • One day erased a midterm rally. Wednesday’s “gridlock is good” narrative did not protect AI and chip holdings when investors reassessed data-centre spending. Index funds fell with the market; concentrated AI books fell harder.
  • Gulf boards did not copy Wall Street’s tape. Higher oil and local flows left TASI, Qatar, Kuwait and Muscat in positive territory even as US tech sold off — a reminder that regional sessions can diverge from overnight US futures.
  • Payrolls are the next swing factor. With FedWatch still pricing a meaningful chance of a December hike, today’s jobs report feeds yields, the dollar, gold and the path for risk assets into next week.

Today’s calendar (Muscat/UAE time, GMT+4)

  • Gulf: can Thursday’s gains hold after Wall Street’s AI rout and Asia’s follow-through, and can the MSX 30 build on a second straight advance?
  • 17:30: US October nonfarm payrolls, unemployment rate and average hourly earnings (Dow Jones: +59,000; UR 4.2%).
  • 18:30 – 01:00: US cash session (Friday).
  • Watch US futures into the open for whether Thursday’s selling pauses after the overnight Asia washout.

Short educational angle: what is a “correction”, and how is it different from a bear market?

Market commentators use two labels that sound similar but mean different drawdowns. A correction usually means an index has fallen about 10% or more from a recent high without yet reaching a deeper downtrend. That is the label CNBC applied to the Nasdaq after Thursday’s close. A bear market is conventionally a drop of about 20% or more from a peak — the threshold Japan’s Nikkei was described as crossing in early Friday trade. The labels are descriptive, not predictive: they tell you how far price has already moved, not whether the next session must bounce or keep falling. Thursday’s AI selloff also shows why a single narrative (“the midterm gridlock rally”) can reverse quickly when a different driver — here, worry about AI and data-centre capital spending — takes over. A correction in one index can sit beside a bear market in another, and beside rising Gulf equities and a rebound in oil, on the same calendar day. Separating the definition from the forecast is the useful habit: know what the word means, then look at earnings, rates, oil and positioning for what might come next. This is an educational explanation only, not a forecast or a trade recommendation.

Sources

  1. CNBC — Stock market selloff on AI fears: live updates, 5 Nov 2026. cnbc.com
  2. CNBC — Stock market today live updates, 5 Nov 2026. cnbc.com
  3. AP — Wall Street stocks: Dow, Nasdaq, 5 Nov 2026. apnews.com
  4. Fox Business — Stocks Nov 5 2026 closes table. foxbusiness.com
  5. CNBC — Oil settles higher after Wednesday crash, 5 Nov 2026. cnbc.com
  6. CNBC — Gold hits two-week high as dollar, yields ease after US midterms, 5 Nov 2026. cnbc.com
  7. SPA / Argaam / The Edge / Reuters via Business Recorder — TASI and Gulf wraps, 5 Nov 2026.
  8. The Edge / Reuters — Qatar, Kuwait All-Share, ADX, DFM, Bahrain closes, 5 Nov 2026.
  9. U Capital — Daily markets close Nov 05 2026. u-capital.net
  10. Marsad / Oman Daily — Muscat session wrap, 5 Nov 2026. marsad.app
  11. Decypha — MSX market page. decypha.com

Disclaimer: This article is for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice, a trading recommendation, or financial advice. Trading and investing involve a substantial risk of loss. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Do your own research and consult a licensed adviser where appropriate. Modern Money Experts (MMEC) is an educational brand.

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