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The Qatar Stock Exchange Thursday fell about 11 points on selling pressure especially in the banks, consumer goods and insurance sectors.The Gulf institutions were increasingly net sellers as the 20-stock Qatar Index was down 0.1% to 10,712.82 points, although it touched an intraday high of 10,792 points.The local retail investors’ weakened net buying had its influence on the main market, whose year-to-date gains truncated to 1.34%.More than 44% of the traded constituents were in the red in the main bourse, whose capitalisation melted QR0.5bn or 0.08% to QR639.65bn, mainly on microcap segments.However, the domestic institutions turned net buyers in the main market, which saw as many as 0.07mn exchange traded funds (sponsored by AlRayan Bank) valued at QR0.15mn trade across 26 deals.The foreign institutions were increasingly bullish in the main bourse, whose trade turnover and volumes were on the rise.The Islamic index was seen making gains vis-à-vis declines in the other indices of the main market, which saw no trading of treasury bills.The Arab individuals were seen net buyers in the main bourse, which saw no trading of sovereign bonds.The Total Return Index was down 0.1% and the All Share Index by 0.14%; while the All Islamic Index was up 0.04% in the main market.The banks and financial services sector index fell 0.24%, consumer goods and services (0.16%), insurance (0.12%) and industrials (0.1%); while transport gained 0.16%, real estate (0.15%) and telecom (0.14%).As many as 18 stocks gained, while 23 declined and 11 were unchanged.Major shakers in the main market included Ahlibank Qatar, Industries Qatar, Doha Insurance, Qatar Industrial Manufacturing, Qatar Islamic Bank, Lesha Bank, Dlala, Widam Food, Mekdam Holding and Qatar Electricity and Water.In the junior bourse, Techno Q saw its shares depreciate in value.Nevertheless, Qatar Cinema and Film Distribution, Inma Holding, Al Mahhar Holding, Qamco, Qatar Oman Investment, Aamal Company, Mesaieed Petrochemical Holding, Ezdan, Vodafone Qatar and Milaha were among the movers in the main market.The Gulf institutions’ net profit booking increased substantially to QR45.33mn compared to QR0.4mn on December 3.The local retail investors’ net buying decreased marginally to QR5.81mn against QR6.98mn the previous day.However, the domestic funds turned net buyers to the tune of QR19.43mn compared with net sellers of QR2.61mn on Wednesday.The foreign institutions’ net buying strengthened significantly to QR16.74mn against QR0.23mn on December 3.The Arab individuals were net buyers to the extent of QR2.15mn compared with net sellers of QR3.17mn the previous day.The foreign retail investors turned net buyers to the tune of QR1.35mn against net sellers of QR0.41mn on Wednesday.The Gulf retail investors’ net profit booking eased perceptibly to QR0.14mn compared to QR0.62mn on December 3.The Arab institutions had no major net exposure for the second straight session.The main market saw an 11% jump in trade volumes to 105.91mn shares and 35% in value to QR365.49mn on almost doubled deals to 29,567.In the venture market, a total of 0.03mn equities valued at QR0.06mn changed hands across 13 transactions. 

Strengthened oil prices and brightened hopes of the US rate cut had their reflection on the Qatar Stock Exchange, which Wednesday closed positive for the third straight session with its key index gaining more than 49 points. The banks, real estate, consumer goods and transport counters witnessed higher than average demand as the 20-stock Qatar Index rose 0.46% to 10,723.46 points, recovering from an intraday low of 10,655 points.The foreign institutions turned net buyers in the main market, whose year-to-date gains improved further to 1.44%. About 55% of the traded constituents extended gains to investors in the main bourse, whose capitalisation added QR2.13bn or 0.33% to QR640.15bn, mainly on microcap segments.The domestic institutions’ weakened net selling had its influence on the main market, which saw as many as 0.12mn exchange traded funds (sponsored by AlRayan Bank and Doha Bank) valued at QR0.28mn trade across 31 deals. The local retail investors continued to be bullish but with lesser intensity in the main bourse, whose trade turnover fell amidst higher volumes.The Islamic index was seen outperforming the other indices of the main market, which saw no trading of treasury bills. The Arab individuals were increasingly net profit takers in the main bourse, which saw no trading of sovereign bonds.The Total Return Index rose 0.46%, the All Share Index by 0.44% and the All Islamic Index by 0.53% in the main market. The banks and financial services sector index gained 0.6%, realty (0.6%), consumer goods and services (0.59%), transport (0.56%), telecom (0.15%) and industrials (0.03%); while insurance was down 0.11%.As many as 29 stocks gained, while 19 declined and five were unchanged. Major movers in the main market include Ahlibank Qatar, Baladna, Al Mahhar Holding, Qatar Islamic Bank, Qamco, Qatar Electricity and Water, Barwa, United Development Company, Milaha and Nakilat.Nevertheless, Qatar Cinema and Film Distribution, Estithmar Holding, Qatar National Cement, QLM and Medicare Group were among the shakers in the main bourse. The foreign institutions turned net buyers to the tune of QR0.23mn compared with net sellers of QR1.36mn on Tuesday.The domestic funds’ net profit booking decreased significantly to QR2.61mn against QR49.5mn the previous day.However, the Arab individual investors’ net selling expanded noticeably to QR3.17mn compared to QR2.21mn on December 2. The Gulf retail investors were net sellers to the extent of QR0.62mn against net buyers of QR0.41mn on Tuesday.The foreign individuals’ net profit booking increased perceptibly to QR0.41mn compared to QR0.07mn the previous day. The Gulf institutions turned net sellers to the tune of QR0.4mn against net buyers of QR7.71mn on December 2.The local retail investors’ net buying decreased substantially to QR6.98mn compared to QR44.87mn on Tuesday.The Arab institutions had no major net exposure against net buyers to the extent of QR0.15mn the previous day. The main market saw a 30% contraction in trade volumes to 95.74mn shares, 36% in value to QR271.39mn and 51% in deals to 14,811.In the venture market, a total of 0.04mn equities valued at QR0.09mn changed hands across 11 transactions.

Overcoming the initial weakness, the Qatar Stock Exchange (QSE) Tuesday finally settled 53 points higher on the back of strong buying support from local retail investors.The banking counter witnessed higher than average demand as the 20-stock Qatar Index rose 0.5% to 10,674.06 points, recovering from an intraday low of 10,573 points.The Gulf institutions were increasingly net buyers in the main market, whose year-to-date gains improved further to 0.97%.About 61% of the traded constituents extended gains to investors in the main bourse, whose capitalisation added QR2.55bn or 0.4% to QR638.02bn, mainly on small and microcap segments.The Arab individuals were increasingly bearish in the main market, which saw as many as 3,616 exchange traded funds (sponsored by AlRayan Bank and Doha Bank) valued at QR8,024 trade across eight deals.The Arab individuals’ weakened net selling had its influence on the main bourse, whose trade turnover and volumes were on the rise.The Islamic index was seen outperforming the other indices of the main market, which saw no trading of treasury bills.However, the domestic institutions were increasingly net profit takers in the main bourse, which saw no trading of sovereign bonds.The Total Return Index rose 0.5%, the All Share Index by 0.43% and the All Islamic Index by 0.57% in the main market.The banks and financial services sector index gained 0.63%, telecom (0.42%), industrials (0.29%), consumer goods and services (0.11%), insurance (0.08%) and real estate (0.02%); while transport was down 0.09%.As many as 31 stocks gained, while 17 declined and three were unchanged.Major movers in the main market include QLM, Widam Food, Qatar German Medical Devices, Vodafone Qatar, AlRayan Bank, Qatar Islamic Bank, Al Faleh Educational Holding and Industries Qatar.Nevertheless, Inma Holding, Beema, Nakilat, Qatar National Cement and Barwa were among the shakers in the main bourse. In the venture market, Techno Q saw its shares depreciate in value.The local retail investors’ net buying increased substantially to QR44.87mn compared to QR2.22mn on December 1.The Gulf institutions’ net buying strengthened markedly to QR7.71mn against QR0.49mn the previous day.The Arab institutions’ net buying expanded marginally to QR0.15mn compared to QR0.02mn on Monday.The Arab individual investors’ net selling weakened noticeably to QR2.21mn against QR5.86mn on December 1.However, the domestic funds’ net profit booking increased significantly to QR49.5mn compared to QR4.97mn the previous day.The foreign institutions turned net sellers to the extent of QR1.36mn against net buyers of QR5.57mn on Monday.The foreign individuals were net sellers to the tune of QR0.07mn compared with net buyers of QR1.69mn on December 1.The Gulf retail investors’ net buying decreased perceptibly to QR0.41mn against QR0.83mn the previous day.The main market saw 24% jump in trade volumes to 137.53mn shares, 24% in value to QR425.41mn and 85% in deals to 30,317.In the venture market, a total of 0.05mn equities valued at QR0.11mn changed hands across 18 transactions. 

Market EyeWeak global oil prices had its reflection on the Qatar Stock Exchange, which Thursday saw its key index settle 45 points lower and capitalisation melt about QR3bn as about 56% of the traded constituents ended in the red. The local retail investors were seen net sellers as the 20-stock Qatar Index shed 0.42% to 10,644.73 points, although it touched an intraday high of 10,722 points. The foreign institutions turned net profit takers in the main market, whose year-to-date gains truncated to 0.7%. The banks and real estate sectors witnessed higher than average selling pressure in the main bourse, whose capitalisation melted QR2.66bn or 0.42% to QR636.73bn, mainly on small and microcap segments.The foreign individuals were seen net sellers, albeit at lower levels, in the main market, which saw as many as 140 exchange traded funds (sponsored by AlRayan Bank and Doha Bank) valued at QR807 trade across three deals. However, the domestic funds were seen net buyers in the main bourse, whose trade turnover and volumes were on the decline. The Islamic index was seen declining slower than the other indices of the main market, which saw no trading of treasury bills. The Arab individuals turned bullish in the main bourse, which saw no trading of sovereign bonds. The Total Return Index shed 0.42%, the All Share Index by 0.41% and the All Islamic Index by 0.28% in the main market. The banks and financial services sector index declined 0.78%, realty (0.62%), transport (0.32%), industrials (0.05%) and telecom (0.04%); while consumer goods and services gained 0.78% and insurance 0.71%. As many as 20 stocks gained, while 29 declined and three were unchanged. Major shakers in the main market included Qatar German Medical Devices, Mazaya Qatar, Salam International Investment, AlRayan Bank, Mekdam Holding, Qatar Islamic Bank, QNB, Meeza and Nakilat.In the junior bourse, Techno Q saw its shares depreciate in value. Nevertheless, Qatar General Insurance, Al Mahhar Holding, Widam Food, Qatar National Cement, Baladna, Woqod, Aamal Company, Estithmar Holding and Qamco were among the movers in the main market.The local retail investors turned net sellers to the tune of QR6.98mn compared with net buyers of QR9.04mn the previous day. The foreign funds were net sellers to the extent of QR6.16mn against net buyers of QR26.06bn on November 26. The foreign individuals turned net profit takers to the extent of QR0.06mn compared with net buyers of QR2.87mn a day ago. The Gulf institutions’ net buying weakened substantially to QR1.62mn against QR18.75mn on Wednesday. However, the domestic funds were net buyers to the tune of QR9.38mn compared with net sellers of QR54.78mn the previous day. The Arab individuals turned net buyers to the extent of QR2.12mn against net sellers of QR0.77mn on November 26. The Arab institutions’ net buying strengthened marginally to QR0.05mn against QR.02mn on Wednesday. The Gulf individuals were net buyers to the tune of QR0.04mn compared with net sellers of QR1.17mn the previous day. The main market saw a 13% contraction in trade volumes to 171.69mn shares, 15% in value to QR399.19mn and 21% in deals to 18,671. 

Doha's fixed income market Monday got the much-needed stimulus with Ahlibank Qatar becoming the first corporate entity to list its bond in the Qatar Stock Exchange (QSE).The listing of Ahlibank Qatar’s a QR500mn, 4.45%; three-year fixed rate note in the QSE comes two years after the Qatar Central Bank launched the third Financial Sector Strategy, which aims to further develop the financial sector in the country as part of the National Vision 2030.The bonds have started trading after a direct listing. The listing marks the first corporate bond issuance to be listed and traded on the Exchange and represents an important milestone in the development and diversification of Qatar’s capital markets.The bonds, which come under its broader $2bn euro medium-term note programme, are traded under the ticker “CA01”, and the indicative (reference) price for the first day of trading was set at 100% of the bond’s nominal value (QR1,000). A 10% price fluctuation limit — upward and downward — is applicable.The net proceeds from each issue of notes will be lent by the issuer (ABQ Finance) to the guarantor (Ahlibank Qatar) and will be used by the guarantor for its general corporate purposes, which include making a profit, or as otherwise specified in the final terms.A bell-ringing ceremony was held at the QSE to mark this milestone occasion. The event was attended by Dr Tamy bin Ahmad al-Binali, chief executive officer of the Qatar Financial Markets Authority; Abdullah Mohammed al-Ansari, chief executive officer of the QSE; Sheikh Mohammed bin Jassim al-Thani, chief executive officer of Edaa; and Hassan Ahmed al-Efrangi, chief executive officer of Ahli Bank. Their presence underscored the high level of co-ordination and institutional alignment among the key entities of Qatar’s financial sector.Ahli Bank has long been a key contributor to Qatar’s financial landscape. The issuance of its inaugural QAR denominated corporate bonds supports the Bank’s efforts to diversify its funding sources, strengthen its capital structure, and enhance long-term financial stability. As one of the country’s established financial institutions, Ahli Bank continues to play an important role in delivering banking solutions and supporting economic development.The listing advances several priorities under the third financial sector strategy. These include market development, financial sector competitiveness, diversification of investment instruments, and broader access for investors. It expands the range of opportunities available to market participants and reinforces the depth and maturity of Qatar’s financial market.The QFMA, QSE, Edaa and Ahli Bank worked closely together to ensure a smooth and efficient listing process consistent with international standards. Their collaboration reflects a unified effort to strengthen market infrastructure, enhance regulatory coordination, and support greater participation from both local and international investors.Qatar’s capital market institutions continue to work to introduce new products and advance initiatives that reinforce the pillars of the Third Financial Sector Strategy. These efforts aim to enhance liquidity, improve market accessibility, and support the evolving needs of issuers and investors.One of the primary goals of developing Qatar’s financial markets is to encourage Qatari companies to raise funds from domestic sources and reduce their reliance on foreign funding. An important initiative in this context will be to establish general guidelines and policies to encourage corporate debt instruments issuance by Qatari companies.

Market EyeThe Qatar Stock Exchange was back in the negative terrain with its key index plummeting more than 143 points on an across the board selling pressure. The Gulf institutions were seen increasingly net profit takers as the 20-stock Qatar Index tanked 1.33% to 10,607.96 points, although it touched an intraday high of 10,750 points.The telecom and industrials counters witnessed higher than average selling pressure in the main market, whose year-to-date gains truncated to 0.35%. About 83% of the traded constituents were in the red in the main bourse, whose capitalisation eroded QR9.03bn or 1.4% to QR633.74bn, mainly on large and midcap segments.However, the foreign institutions were increasingly bullish in the main market, which saw as many as 0.02mn exchange traded funds (sponsored by AlRayan Bank and Doha Bank) valued at QR0.07mn trade across 23 deals. Both local retail investors and domestic funds were also increasingly net buyers in the main bourse, whose trade turnover and volumes were on the rise.The Islamic index was seen declining faster than the other indices of the main market, which saw no trading of treasury bills. The Arab individuals were increasingly net buyers in the main bourse, which saw no trading of sovereign bonds. The Total Return Index shed 1.33%, the All Share Index by 1.25% and the All Islamic Index by 1.49% in the main market.The telecom sector index plunged 4.66%, industrials (1.77%), banks and financial services (0.97%), consumer goods and services (0.77%), transport (0.59%), insurance (0.42%) and real estate (0.3%). As many as eight stocks gained, while 43 declined and one was unchanged.Major shakers in the main market include Ooredoo, Gulf Warehousing, QLM, Inma Holding, Widam Food, Doha Bank, Qatar Islamic Bank, QNB, Qatar Oman Investment, Mannai Corporation, Baladna, Industries Qatar, Gulf International Services, Mesaieed Petrochemical Holding, Estithmar Holding, Qamco and Vodafone Qatar. In the juniour bourse, Techno Q saw its shares depreciate in value. Nevertheless, Qatar General Insurance and Reinsurance, Dukhan Bank, Dlala, Beema and Nakilat were among the movers in the main market.The Gulf institutions’ net profit booking expanded significantly to QR1.75bn compared to QR7.86mn the previous day. However, the foreign funds turned net buyers to the tune of QR1.45bn against net sellers of QR17.68mn on Wednesday. The local retail investors’ net buying increased considerably to QR143.08mn compared to QR12.31mn on November 19.The domestic institutions’ net buying strengthened substantially to QR142.35mn against QR14.02mn the previous day. The Arab individual investors’ net buying grew noticeably to QR9.5mn compared to QR4.93mn on Wednesday. The foreign retail investors were net buyers to the extent of QR1.86mn against net sellers of QR5.28mn on November 19.The Gulf individuals turned net buyers to the tune of QR1.39mn compared with net profit takers of QR0.43mn the previous day. The Arab funds had no major net exposure for the fourth straight session. The main market saw trade volumes more than double to 298.99mn shares and value jump more than five-fold to QR2.53bn on 17% growth in deals to 33,003. In the venture market, a total of 0.09mn equities valued at QR0.19mn changed hands across 13 transactions.

Weak oil and the US Fed rate uncertainty continued to have influence on the Qatar Stock Exchange (QSE) with its key index losing as much as 46 points.The foreign funds were seen increasingly net profit takers as the 20-stock Qatar Index shed 0.43% to 10,800.54 points, although it touched an intraday high of 10,867 points.The industrials, insurance, banks and real estate counters witnessed higher than average selling pressure in the main market, whose year-to-date gains truncated to 2.17%.About 59% of the traded constituents were in the red in the main bourse, whose capitalisation melted QR3.81bn or 0.59% to QR646.15bn, mainly on midcap segments.The foreign retail investors turned bearish in the main market, which saw as many as 0.04mn exchange traded funds (sponsored by AlRayan Bank and Doha Bank) valued at QR0.11mn trade across 17 deals.Weakened net buying of domestic funds Gulf retail investors had its influence on the main bourse, whose trade turnover and volumes were on the rise.The Islamic index was seen declining slower than the other indices of the main market, which saw no trading of treasury bills.However, the local individuals were increasingly net buyers in the main bourse, which saw a total of 0.17mn sovereign bonds valued at QR1.74bn trade across one deal.The Total Return Index shed 0.43%, the All Share Index by 0.49% and the All Islamic Index by 0.29% in the main market.The industrials sector index shrank 0.94%, insurance (0.79%), banks and financial services (0.64%) and realty (0.63%); while telecom gained 0.84%, transport (0.32%) and consumer goods and services (0.18%).As many as 31 stocks declined, while 18 gained and four were unchanged.Major shakers in the main market include Widam Food, Ezdan, Qatar Insurance, Qatar Electricity and Water, Qatar Oman Investment, QNB, Qatar Islamic Bank, Industries Qatar, Gulf International Services, Qatar National Cement and Gulf Warehousing. Techno Q saw its shares depreciate in value.Nevertheless, Vodafone Qatar, Doha Bank, Medicare Group, Qamco, Qatar General Insurance and Reinsurance and Nakilat were among the gainers in the main bourse.The foreign institutions’ net profit booking increased significantly to QR54.44mn compared to QR38.31mn on Sunday.The foreign retail investors turned net sellers to the tune of QR2.75mn against net buyers of QR1.36mn the previous day.The domestic institutions’ net buying declined noticeably to QR7.76mn compared to QR12.64mn on November 16.The Gulf individual investors’ net buying weakened markedly to QR2.29mn against QR4.39mn on Sunday.However, the local retail investors’ net buying expanded substantially to QR36.66mn compared to QR20.98mn the previous day.The Gulf institutions were net buyers to the extent of QR7.62mn against net sellers of QR4.25mn on November 16.The Arab individual investors’ net buying strengthened marginally to QR2.86mn compared to QR2.38mn on Sunday.The Arab funds had no major net exposure against net buyers to the tune of QR0.83mn the previous day.The main market saw 44% jump in trade volumes to 119.5mn shares and 71% in value to QR373.03mn on more than doubled deals to 33,531.In the venture market, a total of 0.03mn equities valued at QR0.07mn changed hands across 13 transactions.

Market EyeReflecting the fading rate cut hopes in the US; the Qatar Stock Exchange (QSE) Sunday saw as much as 83% of the constituents end in the red, resulting in more than 111 points plunge in the key index and more than QR6bn erosion in capitalisation.The Gulf institutions were seen net profit takers as the 20-stock Qatar Index shed 1.01% to 10,846.84 points, although it touched an intraday high of 10,955 points.The local individuals’ weakened net buying had its influence on the main market, whose year-to-date gains truncated to 2.61%.The foreign funds continued to be net sellers but with lesser intensity in the main bourse, whose capitalisation melted QR6.37bn or 0.97% to QR649.46n, mainly on large and midcap segments.The domestic institutions were seen net buyers in the main market, which saw as many as 0.03mn exchange traded funds (sponsored by AlRayan Bank and Doha Bank) valued at QR0.08mn trade across 27 deals.The Gulf retail investors were increasingly bullish in the main bourse, whose trade turnover and volumes were on the decline.The Islamic index was seen declining faster than the other indices of the main market, which saw no trading of treasury bills.The foreign individuals were increasingly net buyers in the main bourse, which saw no trading of sovereign bonds.The Total Return Index shed 1.01%, the All Share Index by 0.87% and the All Islamic Index by 1.28% in the main market.The telecom sector index plummeted 2.91%, industrials (1.56%), transport (1.48%), real estate (0.98%), consumer goods and services (0.61%) and banks and financial services (0.43%); while insurance gained 0.64%.As many as 44 stocks declined, while only five gained and four were unchanged.Major shakers in the main market include Vodafone Qatar, Ooredoo, Qatar Oman Investment, Industries Qatar, Baladna, Qatar Islamic Insurance, Meeza, Al Faleh Educational Holding, Gulf International Services, Qamco, Barwa, Milaha, Gulf Warehousing and Nakilat.Nevertheless, Qatar Insurance, Commercial Bank, Ahlibank Qatar, Inma Holding and Al Khaleej Takaful were among the movers in the main bourse.The Gulf institutions turned net sellers to the tune of QR4.25mn compared with net buyers of QR19.25mn the previous trading day.The local individual investors’ net buying declined substantially to QR20.98mn against QR40.82mn on November 13.However, the domestic institutions were net buyers to the extent of QR12.64mn compared with net sellers of QR16mn on Sunday.The Gulf retail investors’ net buying strengthened noticeably to QR4.39mn against QR2.4mn the previous trading day.The Arab individual investors’ net buying expanded perceptibly to QR2.38mn compared to QR1.77mn on November 13.The foreign retail investors’ net buying rose markedly to QR1.36mn against QR0.65mn on Sunday.The Arab funds were seen net buyers to the tune of QR0.83mn compared with no major net exposure the previous trading day.The foreign institutions’ net selling weakened significantly to QR38.31mn against QR48.99mn on November 13.The main market saw 33% contraction in trade volumes to 82.94mn shares, 42% in value to QR218.64mn and 33% in deals to 14,485.In the venture market, a total of 0.01mn equities valued at QR0.02mn changed hands across six transactions.

Major US stock indexes closed mixed on Wednesday.The S&P 500 .SPX gained 4.45 points, or 0.08%, to end at 6,852.03 points, while the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC lost 57.82 points, or 0.25%, to 23,410.48.The Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI rose 327.72 points, or 0.69%, to 48,259.75.

Qatar Stock Exchange (QSE) index lost 0.09 percent at the beginning of Monday's trading, dropping by 9.40 points to reach the level of 11,038 points compared to the previous session's close, under pressure from three sectors.QSE data showed positive performance for Transportation by 0.65 percent, Telecoms by 0.54 percent, Insurance by 0.39 percent, and Consumer Goods and Services by 0.23 percent. Meanwhile, the performance was negative for Real Estate by 0.16 percent, Banks and Financial Services by 0.29 percent, and Industrials by 0.37 percent.At 10:00 AM, QSE recorded 2,138 transactions worth QAR 33.621 million, distributed over 10.917 million shares.

Investors will seek clues about the health of the US economy in the coming week following worrisome labour market reports and technology-led turbulence that has knocked the stock market off record highs. The S&P 500 ended on Friday with a weekly decline after three straight weeks of gains. The benchmark index was last down about 2.4% from its all-time closing peak on October 28 even after a generally strong third-quarter earnings season for large US companies. This week, concerns about expensive equity valuations, especially for high-flying stocks linked to enthusiasm over artificial intelligence, were exacerbated by tepid jobs data, including a report that showed surging layoff announcements from US employers.Alternative data released by private sector bodies have become more important for investors because the US federal shutdown that began on October 1 has limited government releases."We're not getting a lot of economic data," said Anthony Saglimbene, chief market strategist at Ameriprise Financial. "At current valuations and the kind of gains that we've seen... investors are just starting to be a little bit more cautious. I don't think that is bad, but it is coming at a time where there is growing uncertainty around the pace of growth in the economy."Investors were gauging whether the pullback in equities represented profit-taking and a healthy reset after an extended climb, or the start of a more severe slide. Fears that stocks are in an "AI bubble" have kept Wall Street on edge, with the benchmark S&P 500 up 14% year-to-date and 35% since its low for the year in April.The S&P 500 technology sector, which has led the bull market that began more than three years ago, has been hit harder in this latest drawdown, falling about 6% since last week. A series of reports on Thursday suggested deteriorating US labour market conditions. Data from workforce analytics company Revelio Labs showed 9,100 jobs were lost in October, while US employers' planned layoffs soared to over 153,000 last month, global outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas said. The Chicago Fed estimated that the US jobless rate likely edged up in October to the highest in four years.That data came a day after the ADP National Employment Report showed private employment rebounded by 42,000 jobs in October.The Challenger layoffs report, combined with the lack of government jobs data, "raises a red flag in terms of whether or not the labour market has really stabilised," said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Spartan Capital Securities in New York.Next week would have been a busy week of economic data, with government reports due on consumer and producer prices and retail sales. Those releases are poised to be delayed due to the shutdown. Investors will instead seek insight on the economy from traditionally more secondary reports, including the small business optimism index due to be released on Tuesday by the National Federation of Independent Business.As investors weighed the economic impact of the shutdown, the US transportation secretary warned on Friday the government could force airlines to cut up to 20% of flights if the shutdown did not end.The lack of government data is muddying the outlook for the Fed, which must decide whether to cut interest rates again at its next policy meeting in December. After the central bank eased by a quarter percentage point for a second straight meeting on October 29, Fed Chair Jerome Powell said another such reduction was not a foregone conclusion."The Fed needs help trying to figure out what's going on in the jobs market. They're getting seemingly conflicting signals and what they decide to do in December has ramifications obviously for the stock market," said Chuck Carlson, chief executive officer at Horizon Investment Services. Fed funds futures late on Friday were pricing in a roughly 65% chance of a rate cut in December. Before Powell's October comments, investors had viewed such a cut as almost a done deal.Investors were watching for developments that might suggest the end of the shutdown, which this week became the longest in US history. Focus was also on remaining high-profile quarterly reports, as a stellar earnings season in general nears a close. With 446 companies in the index having reported, 82.5% posted profits above analyst expectations, which would be the highest beat rate since the second quarter of 2021, LSEG IBES said on Friday. Reports due next week include Walt Disney and tech stalwart Cisco Systems. Those lead up to the quarterly report the following week from semiconductor firm Nvidia, the largest company in the world by market value that has symbolised investor enthusiasm for AI."I would just expect a little bit more volatility around technology leaders and technology as a whole heading into that Nvidia report," Saglimbene said.

The stock market didn’t crash this week. But after a seven-month spasm of retail-borne speculation, parts of the casino started clearing out.Cracks emerged across the risk-on landscape as bloated valuations and fresh doubts over the real-world payoff of artificial intelligence dragged US tech stocks to their worst week since April. Losses in megacaps like Palantir Technologies Inc and Oracle Corp. rippled through leveraged ETF and meme trades.The clearest signal of speculative distress: The crypto engine is sputtering. After a parabolic surge, Bitcoin and its peers have endured a violent unwinding that shattered confidence. This week, the coin slid repeatedly toward $100,000 amid a drought of ready buyers who had watched billions of dollars in leveraged positions get wiped out just weeks earlier — a shock the market has yet to recover from.Wall Street veterans have been warning for weeks that AI-fuelled tech valuations were outpacing fundamentals. That caution is now showing up in the same fast-moving trades where retail and institutional risk-taking had quietly converged — from upside-levered ETFs to crypto wrappers. Inflows haven’t vanished, but the payoff is no longer one-way.Peter Atwater, a professor of behavioural economics at the College of William & Mary, says the biggest blow yet to gambler spirits came Monday, when despite beating earnings forecasts Palantir saw its stock fall 8% the next day. The company, trading at a price-earnings multiple in the hundreds, is a bellwether for both hyperscaler tech and meme sentiment, he said.“It sits in the same neighbourhood as AI, as crypto,” he said. “Thematically, all of these different elements have the same intense-confidence correlation. These are all crowd favourites. So this is a crowd phenomenon.”The pullback isn’t universal. But for the first time in months, the speculative surge that once moved in near-lockstep is fragmenting. In equities, some high-octane trades are unravelling. A Meta Platforms Inc-linked ETF fell 8.5% this week and another focused on Palantir shed 22%. A Strategy Inc-minded product has slid more than 20%. Leveraged quantum and Super Micro Computer Inc. trades buckled, too.The group of tech giants known as the Magnificent Seven dropped 3% this week amid questions over their spending plans tied to AI infrastructure. A comment from OpenAI Inc’s CFO about the possibility of the government needing to “backstop” financing further grated nerves.“If you watch this week, there’s been a decided negative bias to what people are saying about AI,” Atwater said. “If we see the mood deteriorate, the scepticism should rise, the scrutiny should intensify. And those would be behaviours that ultimately limit the potential of the market to bounce.”Over the past week, indexes tracking meme stocks, non-profitable tech companies and recent IPOs all pulled back. An ETF focused on recent market entrants fell 5%, the most since September, while a basket of non-profitable names within the innovation space dropped 7%, the most since August.Meanwhile, more than $700mn has been pulled from digital-asset ETFs over the past week alone, including nearly $600mn from BlackRock’s Bitcoin fund and $370mn from its Ether counterpart. Solana and Dogecoin-linked products are down double-digits since their recent launches. Even the freshly minted MEME ETF — pitched as a retail sentiment play — is off more than 20% since its launch a month ago.“Investors are on edge,” said Stephen Kolano, chief investment officer at Integrated Partners. “Seems like the profit taking is coming from the things that have run the most since early April which is AI and anything connected with it which explains the pressure in” cryptocurrencies.That shift may matter beyond the meme complex. Retail risk appetite — from prediction markets and tokenised assets to Robinhood Markets Inc.’s fresh boom — helped fuel 2025’s bounce across broad markets despite stress on the tariff and labour market front. But now, with the gap between winners and losers rising and some risky trades draining capital, liquidity could be getting tighter at the edges.None of this signals a broader crash. The S&P 500 is off just 2% from recent highs. But for a crowd used to buying the everything-goes-up narrative, this week lands differently: Timing matters again. The tide may not be lifting all boats. Leverage cuts both ways.Bitcoin’s 15% slide over the past month is raising eyebrows not just for its scale, but its timing. A growing camp of Wall Street analysts now sees the token as a lead indicator for both high-volatility tech stocks and retail-driven liquidity. Among the chief concerns flagged in recent days is that so-called whales — investors who hold large, long-term positions — have been declining, according to Citi. This cohort has in the past tended to hold onto their hoards even during the roughest of declines.“Bitcoin has a knack for sniffing out things ahead of time,” said Bloomberg Intelligence’s Eric Balchunas. “It’s always trading, so there’s a lot of chances for it to be a price-discovery vehicle. It’s open all the time — like a 7-Eleven. And the people who trade Bitcoin are perpetually online and so plugged in.”The reversal is especially striking given the political momentum behind digital assets. Bitcoin’s early-year surge was powered in part by President Donald Trump’s campaign to rebrand the US as the crypto capital of the world. But after peaking near $4.4tn in October, the total market cap of digital tokens has since dropped nearly 20%, wiping out most of 2025’s gains. For traders betting that regulatory clarity would unleash a new supercycle, the speed of the comedown has been sobering.“There’s simply not enough new capital to offset locals exiting. Too many in the industry just can’t stomach another crypto cycle — they’ve had enough, both financially and emotionally,” Marex’s Ilan Solot wrote in a note this week. “For the uptrend to resume, the whales need to stop selling. Stabilising ETF flows would help too.”