Nasdaq 100 futures fall 2.6% as Intel drops more than 25%
Key Facts
Nasdaq 100 futures fell 2.6%, or 768.75 points, at 08:15 a.m. Eastern time on Friday, October 30, as Intel shares dropped more than 25% and Amazon fell 6.5% before the market opened. Reuters said investors were focused on the cost of building AI infrastructure and how long it would take to generate returns. At the same time, S&P 500 futures fell 1.12%, or 86.5 points, while Dow Jones futures declined 0.08%, or 42 points. The moves followed results and forecasts from Amazon and Intel, but also reflected the sensitivity of stocks to expectations embedded in their prices. By 10 a.m. Eastern time, the Nasdaq Composite was down 2%, the S&P 500 was down 1.1%, and the Dow Jones was lower by 0.3%, or 176 points, according to the Associated Press.
Amazon's third-quarter 2026 results showed net sales of $201.94 billion, up 12% year over year, and net income of $20.69 billion, according to the Associated Press. Even so, the stock fell 6.5% in premarket trading as investors focused on capital spending and the timing of returns. Reuters estimated that Amazon and Intel could lose a combined $300 billion in market value if their premarket losses persisted. By the same estimate, the Nasdaq 100 was at risk of losing nearly $1 trillion, on top of a decline approaching $1.4 trillion during October. These figures highlight the potential breadth of the sell-off, but are not a final estimate of realized losses.
Amazon set a fourth-quarter sales range of $240 billion to $247 billion, compared with analysts' estimate of $244.16 billion, according to the Associated Press. The estimate falls within the company's range, so on its own it does not support describing the forecast as below analysts' expectations; the agency characterized the outlook as cautious. The company also said Prime Day took place in the second quarter of 2026 in most large countries, including the United States, while it fell entirely in the third fiscal quarter of 2025. The event's different timing changes the basis for the quarterly comparison between the two years, as investors monitor business growth alongside investment costs. Amazon shares closed at $243.79 on October 29, before falling in trading ahead of the next day's open, according to EL7 data.
Intel, meanwhile, was under pressure from its forecast for the coming quarter and the continued slowdown in the PC market. The chief financial officer said the PC slowdown was expected to continue at least through the first half of next year. The company's official results did not establish that the forecast was below analysts' estimates, although the stock fell more than 25% before the market opened, according to Reuters. Intel shares had closed at $92.07 on October 29, while the Nasdaq 100 closed at 29,402.51 points.
Art Hogan, strategist at B. Riley Wealth, told Reuters that the issue was what was priced into the stock and the scale of investors' expectations, adding that the move represented "a shift from a highly popular tech trade to safer havens." In the broader market, the yield on 10-year U.S. Treasuries fell to 4.94% from 4.98% late Thursday. By contrast, Brent crude rose 2.4% to $113.45 a barrel on Friday, according to the Associated Press. The Nasdaq was on track in October to end a two-month run of monthly gains, while the S&P 500 and Dow Jones remained on course for monthly gains, according to Reuters.
As investors await the next move in the market for AI-related companies, Reuters said Anthropic's potentially record-breaking initial public offering would be a test of investor sentiment toward those companies. On monetary policy, Federal Reserve materials confirm that the Federal Open Market Committee met on October 27 and 28, and that the interest rate on reserve balances was held at 3.90% effective October 29. Official materials do not confirm market expectations for the path of interest rates through 2027. The outcome of the anticipated offering and developments in corporate spending remain among the factors investors are watching after the sell-off.