MARKET MELTDOWN: Stocks Tank Again After Flirting With Gains
*By Carlo Versano*
Stocks were back to significant losses by late Thursday morning after briefly going positive in early trading. Wednesday's sell-off spilled over into global markets ー first in Asia, where all the major indices were down at least 3 percent, then to Europe, where markets were lower by around a percent in afternoon trading.
The Dow Industrials were down nearly 300 points by 11 a.m. ET. The Nasdaq and S&P were off by about a percent, and the Russell 2000 briefly entered correction territory.
The spread of red ink -- the S&P was down for its sixth straight day -- suggested more turbulence ahead for Wall Street, where a growing list of concerns is sowing unrest for a market that has been on a historic run on the back of strong earnings.
Wednesday's rout, in which the Dow finished down more than 800 points and the tech-heavy Nasdaq lost four percent, started with worry over creeping inflation and tightening Fed policy and quickly turned into an all-out sell-off, with high-flying tech stocks taking the most serious beating.
Amazon ($AMZN) was the biggest loser in the sector, losing more than $56 billion in market cap on Wednesday alone. The much-watched FAANG stocks, which also include Facebook ($FB), Apple ($AAPL), Netflix ($NFLX), and Google parent Alphabet ($GOOGL), shed a combined $175 billion in value ー about the entire market cap of Citigroup ($C).
It was the worst day for stocks in eight months, and the fifth-straight down day for the S&P.
President Trump, who's been quick to tout recent record highs in the market as a result of his economic and foreign policy, took this opportunity to criticize the Fed, calling the central bank "loco" for increasing rates.
The U.S. trade war with China has largely been brushed off by the markets, but the slide shows it may finally be taking a toll. Tech stocks were the biggest losers in China Thursday, with names like Tencent and Xiaomi leading the decline.
Thursday's sell-off only adds to what's already been a rough month for U.S. stocks. The Dow is down more than 3 percent already in October, while the S&P 500 is down over 4 percent. The Nasdaq has fallen nearly 8 percent.
Nestlé has dismissed its CEO Laurent Freixe after an investigation into an undisclosed relationship with a direct subordinate. The company announced on Monday that the dismissal was effective immediately. An investigation found that Freixe violated Nestlé’s code of conduct. He had been CEO for a year. Philipp Navratil, a longtime Nestlé executive, will replace him. Chairman Paul Bulcke stated that the decision was necessary to uphold the company’s values and governance. Navratil began his career with Nestlé in 2001 and has held various roles, including CEO of Nestlé's Nespresso division since 2024.
Kraft Heinz is splitting into two companies a decade after they joined in a massive merger that created one of the biggest food companies on the planet. One of the companies will include brands such as Heinz, Philadelphia cream cheese and Kraft Mac & Cheese. The other will include brands like Oscar Mayer, Kraft Singles and Lunchables. When the company formed in 2015 it wanted to capitalize on its massive scale, but shifting tastes complicated those plans, with households seeking to introduce healthier options at the table. Kraft Heinz's net revenue has fallen every year since 2020.
