Overnight Developments
U.S. pulls diplomats from Saudi Arabia as it reportedly readies Iran strikes after midterms — CNBC
The State Department ordered non-emergency government employees and their families out of Saudi Arabia as Houthi attacks on the kingdom escalate. The New York Times, citing unnamed U.S. officials, reports the U.S. and Israeli militaries have drawn up specific plans for renewed strikes on Iran after the Nov. 3 midterms. This lands a day after Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said mines stopped three tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, so the war-risk premium that faded yesterday afternoon is back on. Affected sectors: Energy, Airlines, Transports, Defense
Brent crude tops $111 on Middle East worries as U.S., Israel reportedly weigh fresh Iran strikes — CNBC
Brent rose 2.68% to $111.74 and WTI 2.21% to $99.30 as of 6:30 a.m. ET. That puts WTI within a dollar of $100, and it comes the morning after Southwest cut its 2026 profit forecast on fuel. Affected sectors: Energy, Airlines, Consumer
China’s stock market sinks into bear territory as CSI 300 extends 10-week rout — CNBC
The CSI 300 fell 20% from its June peak, its tenth straight weekly decline, as margin erosion from intense domestic competition keeps hitting profit growth. The Hang Seng dropped 3% and the Nikkei 2.7% in a tech-led session. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang told CNBC from GTC Berlin that neocloud demand is “off the charts” but capital is scarce, with CoreWeave and Nebius down about 4% pre-market as the AI-credit worries from last night’s session carry over. Affected sectors: Tech, Semiconductors, AI Infrastructure
Earnings reactions reverse overnight
Meta, Tesla and IBM all beat after the close, and all three are lower this morning. Meta traded as high as $746 (+6.8%) in the first hour after hours on its revenue beat and $73–76 billion Q4 guide, then gave the entire gain back and sits at $685 (-1.8%) pre-market. Tesla beat on EPS (48 cents vs. 43 cents) and revenue but is down 3.6% as auto revenue fell 3% and free cash flow dropped 62%. IBM beat on both lines and raised its free cash flow outlook, but a narrower-than-expected gross margin has the stock down 5.1%. Affected sectors: Tech, Autos, Software
Futures & Pre-Market
| Index | Futures | Change |
|---|---|---|
| S&P 500 | 7,722.50 | -1.0% |
| NASDAQ | 29,508.00 | -1.7% |
| DOW | 52,702.00 | -0.7% |
Changes are measured against the October 21 settle, as of 06:50 ET. The VIX is at 18.13 from 16.68, gold is down 1.2%, and Bitcoin is down 2.5% to about $81,900.
Watchlist Movers
Pre-market prints as of ~07:05 ET versus yesterday’s close.
- MSTR -5.3% pre-market — Bitcoin down 2.5% overnight
- INTC -4.4% pre-market — semis selling off with the Nasdaq; no Intel-specific news overnight, earnings next week
- CRCL -4.4% pre-market — crypto and fintech risk-off
- SMR -4.0%, OKLO -3.6% pre-market — nuclear names giving back; NNE indicated -3.8% on only two thin prints
- RKLB -3.8% pre-market — unwinding yesterday’s SpaceX sympathy rally
- SMCI -3.4% pre-market — giving back part of yesterday’s 9.6% guidance-raise gap
- TSM -3.0% pre-market — Asia tech selloff
- TEM -3.0% pre-market
- GOOG -2.3%, NVDA -2.0%, META -1.8%, AMZN -1.7% pre-market
International Markets
Asia sold off hard: Nikkei -2.65% to 62,908, Hang Seng -3.03% to 22,935, Shanghai -1.48%. Europe is softer but orderly: DAX -0.8%, FTSE -0.4%. The Bank of Korea held rates.
What to Watch at Open
Whether Meta can hold its $73–76 billion guide against a tape that is selling every beat, and whether semis and neoclouds find a bid with the Nasdaq indicated down 1.7%. Oil near $100 WTI on the renewed Iran strike reports is the swing factor for airlines and transports, and the 10-year at 5.15% leaves no cushion if the Hormuz premium feeds into inflation expectations.
This alert is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice.