Tech sold off again and oil just hit $112 — as the U.S. ordered diplomats' families out of Saudi Arabia

Global stocks fell on Thursday as the optimism from tech earnings proved fleeting. Reuters reported that MSCI's All-World index was set for its largest daily fall in two weeks, down 0.4 per cent, while Europe's STOXX 600 slid 1 per cent on weakness in tech-related names.

The selloff carried into the New York open: the Nasdaq Composite dropped 1.48 per cent to 26,308.41, the S&P 500 fell 0.81 per cent and the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.13 per cent, according to market reporting. Asia had felt it earlier, with South Korea's KOSPI losing more than 4 per cent and Japan's Nikkei falling about 2.65 per cent.

The trigger was the fine print of the big AI spenders. Meta beat expectations on third-quarter revenue of US$64.6 billion, up 26 per cent, but its plan to issue non-voting stock to fund the AI buildout — plus a US$25-billion New Mexico data-privacy penalty — rattled investors, Reuters reported. Tesla cut its 2026 capital-spending forecast from above US$25 billion to about US$20 billion despite beating earnings, sending the shares down roughly 5 per cent in premarket trading.

A second front opened in the oil market. Brent crude jumped about 3 per cent to US$112 a barrel, near a five-month high, after more Houthi attacks in Saudi Arabia raised the risk of wider conflict and supply disruptions, according to Reuters.

Washington responded directly: the State Department ordered non-emergency diplomatic staff and their families to leave Saudi Arabia, deepening the risk-off mood that also pushed money into government bonds.

The Canadian angle

The one-two punch hits Canada on both ends. Energy producers welcome US$112 oil, but it flows straight into gasoline prices — and into the Bank of Canada's math six days before its Oct. 28 rate decision, where markets have shifted sharply toward expecting a hike.

What to watch Friday

Whether tech finds buyers after the Meta and Tesla rethinks, whether Brent holds above US$110, and whether the Saudi evacuation signals escalation — or containment.