Tech shares slide as BP reports an 18-year profit high

Wall Street's October turns sour

Friday's financial pages were dominated by a heavy sell-off in American technology shares, on the last trading day of October. City A.M. called it "tech carnage". This is Money, writing on the eve of Halloween, said the slump had sparked fears of a stock market crash. Both papers pointed to earnings, with City A.M. saying investors had been spooked by gloomy results from the companies most closely tied to artificial intelligence.

The Wall Street Journal was more specific. It tied the day's slide in US stocks to results from Amazon and Intel, which it said had sparked more AI selling. The Guardian put the cost at nearly $1tn in US market value after what it called subpar earnings reports. By the Journal's reckoning, the deepening sell-off was pushing the Nasdaq towards its worst month in more than a year.

Some money went to safer ground. The Journal reported that global bond yields fell sharply in October amid a flight to safety. Separately, it reported that the hedge fund Arini had offloaded $800 million in debt as its losses deepened.

The timing is awkward for Anthropic. This is Money asked whether its flotation would see shares soar like SpaceX or be brought down to earth by the sell-off. The South China Morning Post, looking at the same planned mega-IPO, asked why Chinese tech valuations remain so far behind.

BP's windfall and a mixed day in London

In London the day belonged to BP. Its profits had quadrupled in a year, according to This is Money and Euronews, and the Guardian and Sky News both put them at an 18-year high. The Guardian's headline carried the word "obscene" in quotation marks.

The explanation was the same across the coverage. The Guardian and Euronews both credited the Iran war with driving up refining margins, and Euronews added that BP's debt had tumbled. City A.M. reported that the shares lifted on the news. This is Money said BP's army of small investors had been boosted, with the shares up 39%. Oil itself was firmer. City A.M.'s live coverage reported prices rising as the US considered strikes on Iran, even as the FTSE 100 lost steam.

Banks offered a contrast. Sky News noted that NatWest had become the latest bank to make billions, but its shares went the other way. The Wall Street Journal said they fell after the bank's guidance on interest income disappointed. City A.M. described a muted quarter and pointed to wealth income boosted by the Evelyn Partners takeover.

AstraZeneca fared better. Euronews reported a 23% jump in profit on cancer drugs, alongside a major savings plan. City A.M. said the shares rose as the company began a $2bn investment in its drug pipeline. On Thursday evening, This is Money had reported that Haleon shares sank amid weak demand for cold and flu medicine.

Rates, houses and the £1 shop

At home, the talk was of borrowing costs. City A.M. reported that a rise in interest rates from the Bank of England was regarded as "nailed on".

The housing market was already feeling the effect. The Guardian reported that UK house prices grew at their slowest pace in two years as mortgage rates rose.

On the high street, Poundland was in difficulty. The Guardian examined how rampant inflation and price wars had left £1 stores exposed. This is Money reported that the crisis had been branded "disgraceful" as a previously rejected bidder made another attempt at a takeover. Elsewhere in corporate Britain, Mobico, the owner of National Express, agreed a £308m takeover that will put it in Spanish hands. And City A.M. reported that the law firm Gibson Dunn had taken on Weil's private funds team as part of a City expansion.

Prices were the theme across the Atlantic too. In a Guardian comment piece, Steven Greenhouse argued that Donald Trump had vowed to reduce prices but that his policies had fuelled US inflation. The Wall Street Journal reported that Affordable Care Act rates were set to rise steeply again. In Asia, the South China Morning Post listed five figures investors were watching, from "national team" intervention to Yulan bonds, and reported that Evergrande's liquidators had sold a controlling stake in its property services unit for US$513 million.