Nasdaq Slides 2.1% to Cap Its Worst Week Since June as AI Debt Worries Hit Chips; Brent Jumps to $109.86, Lifting TASI 0.82% While Qatar Falls 2% to a Six-Year Low - Modern Money Experts

Nasdaq Slides 2.1% to Cap Its Worst Week Since June as AI Debt Worries Hit Chips; Brent Jumps to $109.86, Lifting TASI 0.82% While Qatar Falls 2% to a Six-Year Low

مواضيع اخرى

Nasdaq Slides 2.1% to Cap Its Worst Week Since June as AI Debt Worries Hit Chips; Brent Jumps to $109.86, Lifting TASI 0.82% While Qatar Falls 2% to a Six-Year Low

Takeaway: On Monday 19 October 2026 (Asia/Dubai), markets are digesting a tech-led sell-off on Wall Street and an oil spike. On Friday the Nasdaq fell 2.1% to 26,140.03, the S&P 500 lost 1.09% to 7,659.44 and the Dow slipped 0.34% to 52,002.41, as worries about the debt behind the AI build-out hit CoreWeave and chipmakers. For the week the Nasdaq lost 4.5% and the S&P 500 1.9%, while the Dow still gained 0.7%. Oil jumped: Brent settled at $109.86 (+3.72%), its highest since 19 May, and WTI at $101.41 (+3.51%). In the Gulf’s Sunday session, TASI rose 0.82% to 10,189.77 on a 2.1% gain in Aramco, while Qatar fell 2.00% to 8,633.57, its lowest close since April 2020, and Kuwait’s All-Share eased 0.40% to 8,442.06. Monday morning, Brent eased back toward $108 after President Trump waived some sanctions on Russian energy, US futures rebounded, and Japan and Korea opened lower.

What happened

1) US equities: AI-debt worries drag tech to its worst week since June

  • Friday 16 October 2026 close (AP; CNBC): S&P 500 7,659.44 (−84.62 / −1.09%), Nasdaq Composite 26,140.03 (−572.99 / −2.1%), Dow 52,002.41 (−175.28 / −0.34%), Russell 2000 2,721.37 (−45.90 / −1.7%). The S&P 500 and Nasdaq both closed below their 50-day moving averages (CNBC).
  • Week (AP): S&P 500 −1.9%, Nasdaq −4.5%, Russell 2000 −3.0%, Dow +0.7%. The Nasdaq’s four-week winning streak ended (Investopedia via Yahoo Finance). The PHLX Semiconductor Index fell 11.4% on the week in its longest losing streak since 2008 (Reuters).
  • Movers: CoreWeave fell about 12% as concerns grew over its debt load (CNBC; Investopedia). Intel lost 5.8% and Micron 5.6% (AP). Meta fell nearly 4%, Tesla about 2% and Nvidia 1.5%, while Apple was the only “Magnificent Seven” name to finish higher, up about 0.5% (Investopedia via Yahoo Finance).
  • Sectors: communication services and information technology were the weakest S&P 500 groups in afternoon trade, while energy and utilities led the gainers; Chevron helped limit the Dow’s losses (CNBC). The VIX volatility gauge rose above 22 during the session for the first time in four months (CNBC).

2) Rates, the Fed and the dollar

  • The 10-year Treasury yield was above 5.09% late Friday, about 2 basis points higher on the day, after spiking to 5.33% following Wednesday’s CPI data (Investopedia via Yahoo Finance). In Asia on Monday it was down about 3 basis points at around 5.06%, after its largest weekly fall in more than eight months (Reuters).
  • Fed Chair Kevin Warsh, speaking at an IMF event in Bangkok, gave no signal on the next rate move. CME FedWatch put the chance of a hike at the 27–28 October meeting at about 17%, down from 28% a day earlier (Investopedia via Yahoo Finance); CNBC cited an 82% chance of no change.
  • The US dollar index slipped 0.3% to 101.80 and gold futures rose 0.5% to $4,190 an ounce (Investopedia via Yahoo Finance).

3) Oil: Brent at its highest since May, then a Monday pullback

  • Friday settlement (CNBC; Reuters): Brent $109.86 (+$3.94 / +3.72%), the highest settle since 19 May; WTI $101.41 (+3.51%). CNBC tied the move to rising tension between the US and Iran, including Iranian attacks in the Strait of Hormuz, and Ukraine’s pledge to keep striking Russian refineries.
  • Monday in Asia, Brent fell 1.6% to $108.06 and WTI 0.7% to $100.70 (Reuters, early Asia trade), after President Trump waived some sanctions and tariffs on Russian energy. Reuters added that Trump later said a final decision had not been made, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the president would take up to 60 days to assess the economic impact. AFP later quoted Brent at $107.89 and WTI at $100.62.
  • Gulf supply risk has not gone away: Iran reported another tanker hitting a mine in the Strait of Hormuz (Reuters), and Iran’s foreign minister said Tehran’s offer to the US to reopen the strait within seven days was still on the table (Reuters).

4) Gulf equities: Sunday 18 October

  • TASI 10,189.77 (+83.23 / +0.82%), breaking a two-day losing run, with turnover of about SAR 2.35bn and 208 gainers against 68 decliners (Argaam). Aramco rose 2.06% to SAR 25.80 and the energy sector gained 1.99%; SABIC added 2.6%, SNB 1.3% and Al Rajhi 0.25% (Argaam; Asharq Al-Awsat).
  • Qatar (QE) 8,633.57 (−176.60 / −2.00%), its lowest close since April 2020 and a third straight decline (Reuters; QNA; The Edge). Only 6 stocks rose against 43 that fell, on turnover of about QR320.6m (QNA). Industries Qatar fell 4.3% and Qatar Islamic Bank 2.6% (Reuters).
  • Kuwait All-Share 8,442.06 (−33.87 / −0.40%), a third straight decline; Premier Market −0.24% to 8,870.72, Main Market −1.18% to 8,486.51; value traded about KD38.9m (KUNA via Sarmad; The Edge).
  • UAE (Friday 16 October; the UAE trades Monday to Friday): Dubai’s DFM index rose 0.63% to 5,867.31, led by Emirates NBD (+2%) and DEWA (+1.9%), and Abu Dhabi edged 0.04% higher to 9,808.37 (Reuters via Business Recorder; The Edge). Both markets reopen today alongside the rest of the Gulf.
  • Elsewhere Sunday: Oman’s MSX 30 −0.29% to 7,656.14 and Egypt’s EGX 30 −2.63% to 50,896.19 (The Edge; Reuters).

5) Asia and futures: Monday morning

  • Friday close (CNBC): Nikkei 225 +1.39% to 65,324.29, Kospi +2.05% to 5,668.05. Even so, the Kospi lost 14.5% over the week, its worst week since October 2008 (CNBC).
  • Monday: Japan’s Nikkei was down about 1.2% at 64,534.03 at the midday break after losing as much as 2% earlier, and Korea’s Kospi was down about 0.2% at 5,656.47 after a fall of as much as 2.7% at the open (AFP; Newsquawk; Reuters). Hong Kong is closed for the Chung Yeung holiday (AFP; Newsquawk).
  • US futures rebounded: S&P 500 futures +0.5%, Nasdaq futures +0.8% (Reuters; Newsquawk).
  • China’s third-quarter GDP grew 4.5% y/y, up from 4.3% in the second quarter and above a 4.4% forecast; September industrial output rose 5.5% and retail sales 1.1% (NBS via Xinhua; Newsquawk).

Why it matters for Gulf + US-focused Arab traders

  • The AI trade is now a credit story too: Friday’s selling centred on how the AI build-out is being financed, not on a single earnings miss. That is why highly indebted names such as CoreWeave and the memory chipmakers moved the most, and why this week’s big-tech results will be read for spending plans as well as profits.
  • Same oil move, different Gulf reactions: Higher crude lifted Aramco and TASI on Sunday, while Qatar and Kuwait kept falling. Regional security headlines and local flows still matter as much as the oil price.
  • Oil is swinging on politics: Brent added almost $4 on Friday and gave back more than a dollar in early Monday trade on a sanctions headline. Settlements and confirmed policy moves are a better guide than the first reaction.

What’s ahead

  • Today (Monday): Gulf markets open with Dubai and Abu Dhabi rejoining after their weekend. US NAHB housing index at 18:00 Asia/Dubai (eOption calendar).
  • Tuesday: US housing starts and building permits (16:30 Asia/Dubai); General Motors and GE Aerospace before the open; Netflix and United Airlines after the close (CNBC; eOption).
  • Wednesday: Meta, Tesla, Texas Instruments, Lam Research and IBM after the US close; AT&T before the open; a US$13bn 20-year Treasury auction (CNBC; eOption; Reuters).
  • Thursday: US weekly jobless claims (16:30 Asia/Dubai); Procter & Gamble and American Airlines before the open (CNBC; eOption).
  • Friday: S&P Global flash PMIs for October (17:45 Asia/Dubai) and the final University of Michigan sentiment and inflation-expectations survey (18:00 Asia/Dubai); American Express before the open (eOption).
  • About 70 S&P 500 companies report this week (CNBC). The next Fed decision is on 28 October, at the end of the 27–28 October meeting (CNBC).

Short educational angle: what the VIX does and doesn’t tell you

The Cboe Volatility Index (VIX) is built from S&P 500 option prices and reflects how much movement the options market is pricing for the next 30 days. It is not a forecast of direction. A reading above 20 is often used as a rough marker of elevated stress, which is why Friday’s move above 22 during the session drew attention. Two habits help. First, check whether a level was reached intraday or held into the close, because the two can tell different stories on a volatile day. Second, read the VIX together with breadth, credit and rates: on Friday, only slightly more than half of S&P 500 stocks fell (AP) even as the index lost 1.1%, which pointed to stress concentrated in tech and AI-linked heavyweights rather than a market-wide rush for the exit. This is educational framing only, not a forecast or a recommendation on any trade.

Sources

  1. AP News — How major US stock indexes fared Friday 10/16/2026. apnews.com
  2. AP News — US markets are weighed down by an extended sell-off in the tech sector, 16 Oct 2026. apnews.com
  3. CNBC — Nasdaq slides 2% Friday to post worst week since June: live updates, 16 Oct 2026. cnbc.com
  4. Investopedia via Yahoo Finance — Markets News, Oct. 16, 2026. finance.yahoo.com
  5. CNBC — Meta, Tesla earnings preview: week of Oct. 19, 18 Oct 2026. cnbc.com
  6. eOption — Weekly event calendar 10/19/2026 – 10/23/2026. eoption.com
  7. Reuters via Business Standard — Asian stocks skid on AI worries; Wall Street and bonds aided by oil slip, 19 Oct 2026. business-standard.com
  8. Reuters via Investing.com — Oil slips as Trump’s sanction waiver may lead to more Russian fuel supplies, 19 Oct 2026. investing.com
  9. AFP — Asian stocks start week on back foot, tracking tech-led Wall St losses, 19 Oct 2026. afp.com
  10. Newsquawk — Asia-Pac stocks mixed as tech selling weighs on Japan and Korea; US futures rebound, 19 Oct 2026. newsquawk.com
  11. Reuters via MarketScreener — Oil lifts Saudi bourse; Egypt tumbles on regional tensions, 18 Oct 2026. marketscreener.com
  12. Argaam — TASI rises 0.8% to 10,190 pts, turnover at SAR 2.4B, 18 Oct 2026. argaam.com
  13. Asharq Al-Awsat — Saudi stock market closes 0.82% higher, led by energy sector, 18 Oct 2026. aawsat.com
  14. QNA via MENAFN / The Peninsula — Qatar Stock Exchange index closes lower, 18 Oct 2026. menafn.com
  15. KUNA via Sarmad — Boursa Kuwait closes lower, 18 Oct 2026. sarmad.com
  16. The Edge — Middle East Market Wrap, 18 October 2026. edgeconsultancykw.com
  17. Reuters via Business Recorder — UAE stocks track global shares higher, 16 Oct 2026. brecorder.com
  18. Xinhua — China’s GDP expands 4.5 pct year on year in Q3, 19 Oct 2026. news.cn

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.

إشترك لتصلك تحليلاتنا

إشترك في قائمتنا البريدية للحصول على أخبار تحليلاتنا بشكل مستمر .

ما هي إهتماماتك ؟

"لن نرسل رسائل غير مرغوب فيها أبدًا! تفضلوا بالاطلاع على سياسة الخصوصية الخاصة بنا لمزيد من المعلومات."