Dow sinks 600 points as oil hits a six-month high; S&P 500 and Nasdaq post a second weekly loss
After the close, Friday October 23: what moved, why, and what to watch next.
The close
| Index | Day |
|---|---|
| S&P 500 | -0.5% |
| Dow Jones Industrial Average | -1.2% |
| Nasdaq Composite | -0.2% |
Moves are rounded. The Dow fell about 600 points as selling broadened beyond technology, with rising oil prices pressuring the market a day after the Nasdaq's worst drop since June. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq posted losses for a second straight week, while the Dow ended the week with a gain.
What moved, and why
Oil surged again. Brent crude settled just north of $116 a barrel, its highest since late April, and U.S. crude topped $103, as Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia, a U.S. pullout of non-essential staff from the kingdom and expectations of new U.S. strikes on Iran fed supply fears. Brent gained about 6% on the week. See our oil story.
American Express led the Dow lower. Shares fell about 3.5% to 4% after the company said it would cut 5% of its workforce to prepare for AI, taking a $336 million charge even as it raised its full-year profit forecast.
Fuel costs hit airlines. United, Delta and American each fell more than 4% as crude's jump raised the prospect of higher jet-fuel bills, a day after American forecast a 2026 loss on fuel costs.
Telecoms fell on the SpaceX report. AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile dropped after a report that SpaceX is in talks to build a fourth nationwide wireless network; tower owners Crown Castle and American Tower jumped. See our telecom story.
Tech steadied. The semiconductor index rose about 1% a day after its worst drop since June, and Nvidia and AMD closed mixed. Cybersecurity names bucked the trend: SailPoint, Cloudflare and Palo Alto Networks each rose more than 5%. SpaceX, Tesla and Meta stabilized after Thursday's slide.
Bonds held their gains. The 10-year Treasury yield rose Friday but stayed below 5%, on pace for a third straight weekly decline after Thursday's flight to safety. The final Michigan sentiment reading held steady while inflation expectations hit their highest since May - see our sentiment story.
What to watch next
A heavy week: Microsoft, Alphabet and Amazon report earnings, and the Federal Reserve meets Tuesday and Wednesday, with markets expecting rates to stay unchanged. Oil's climb keeps inflation - and the Fed - in focus. Markets reopen Monday; Ticker Den's next regular edition is Monday's First Light.
