Global stock markets slid sharply on Tuesday, November 18, 2025, as investors rushed out of high‑growth technology and crypto assets amid mounting worries about an “AI bubble” and fading hopes for rapid interest‑rate cuts from the U.S. Federal Reserve. From Tokyo to London to New York, equity indices fell, volatility jumped and safe‑haven assets such as government bonds and gold drew renewed demand. [1]
Key takeaways
- Global equities fell for a fourth straight session, with the MSCI World Index down about 0.9% on the day and more than 3% below last week’s highs. [2]
- Wall Street extended its pullback: the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 1.18%, the S&P 500 fell 0.89%, and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.87%. [3]
- Europe joined the sell-off: the FTSE 100 slid 1.27% to 9,552, its biggest one‑day fall since April, while the Stoxx Europe 600 dropped around 1.8–1.9%. [4]
- Asia saw the heaviest equity losses, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 down 3.2% and South Korea’s Kospi off about 3.3%. [5]
- Crypto markets have shed more than $1–1.2 trillion in six weeks, with bitcoin down roughly 27–28% to the low $90,000s, its lowest level since April. [6]
Wall Street Today: Tech and AI Leaders Lead the Retreat
After repeatedly setting records through October and early November, U.S. stocks continued their reversal.
By the closing bell on November 18:
- Dow Jones Industrial Average: 46,041.93 (‑1.18%)
- S&P 500: 6,612.96 (‑0.89%)
- Nasdaq Composite: 22,509.65 (‑0.87%) [7]
Intraday, the S&P 500 had already been down around 0.7%, with the Dow off roughly 1% and the Nasdaq lower by about 1%, according to Associated Press reporting, underscoring persistent selling pressure throughout the U.S. session. [8]
The pain was concentrated in mega‑cap technology and AI‑linked names:
- Nvidia extended a month‑long slide ahead of closely watched earnings due Wednesday, after years of outsized gains powered by demand for AI chips. [9]
- Other tech heavyweights such as Microsoft, Amazon, Alphabet and Meta all traded notably lower at various points during the day, exerting outsized influence on index performance given their large weights. [10]
A Bank of America survey cited by both AP and The Guardian found that 45% of global fund managers now see an AI bubble as the top “tail risk” — the biggest potential threat on the horizon even if its timing is uncertain. [11]
Adding to the gloom, Home Depot warned of a steeper‑than‑expected drop in annual profit, casting doubt on the strength of the U.S. consumer and helping drag the Dow lower. [12]
Europe: FTSE 100 Suffers Biggest Fall Since April
European markets were firmly risk‑off on Tuesday, mirroring and amplifying Monday’s weakness:
- FTSE 100 (UK): closed at 9,552, down 123 points (‑1.27%), its largest one‑day fall since April 7, when earlier tariff headlines from Washington rattled markets. [13]
- Stoxx Europe 600: fell around 1.8–1.9%, tracking declines in large caps across the continent. [14]
- CAC 40 (France): dropped about 2.2%.
- DAX (Germany): lost close to 2%, hitting its lowest levels in several months. [15]
European traders reported a noticeable jump in volatility. The U.S. VIX “fear index” climbed to around 23–24, its highest in roughly a month, reflecting the global spike in investor anxiety. [16]
Commentators interviewed in London described a sense of “whiplash” after last week’s talk that the FTSE 100 might soon test the 10,000 mark; instead, the index is now sliding back toward previous milestones as AI and tech valuations come under intense scrutiny. [17]
Asia-Pacific: Nikkei and Kospi Lead a Sharp Slide
The global sell‑off began in Asia and set the tone for the rest of the day:
- Japan’s Nikkei 225: tumbled 3.2%, with gains from earlier in the quarter largely erased. [18]
- MSCI Asia‑Pacific ex‑Japan: fell about 2%, touching a one‑month low. [19]
- South Korea’s Kospi: dropped roughly 3.3%, another of the steepest moves among major indices. [20]
- Hong Kong’s Hang Seng: slid around 1.7%, adding to year‑to‑date underperformance. [21]
In Japan, the sell‑off coincided with a jump in local government bond yields amid expectations of bigger fiscal spending under Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and concerns about the country’s heavy public debt. Higher yields raise discount rates used in equity valuations and can hit growth and tech stocks particularly hard. [22]
Crypto Crash Deepens: Over $1 Trillion Wiped Out
If equities had a bad day, crypto had a worse six weeks.
New data from CoinGecko, reported by The Guardian and the Financial Times, show that:
- The global cryptocurrency market cap has fallen about 25% since early October, erasing more than $1–1.2 trillion in value. [23]
- Bitcoin has dropped roughly 27–28% over that period to around $91,000–92,000, briefly trading below $90,000 on Tuesday — its lowest level since April 2025. [24]
Analysts tie the crypto drawdown to the same forces punishing high‑growth equities:
- Exuberant AI and tech valuations are prompting warnings from high‑profile figures, including Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, who has described “irrationality” in parts of the AI boom. [25]
- Executives such as JPMorgan’s Daniel Pinto and Klarna’s Sebastian Siemiatkowski have voiced concerns that massive data‑center and chip investments may not deliver the near‑term returns implied by current prices, heightening bubble fears. [26]
Even with a modest intraday rebound — Reuters noted bitcoin recovering back above $92,000 later in the U.S. session — the broader message from digital assets is clear: risk appetite has cooled sharply. [27]
Bonds, Currencies and Commodities: Classic Risk-Off Patterns
While equities and crypto sold off, defensive assets behaved more like safe havens.
Government bonds
U.S. Treasuries drew renewed demand:
- The 10‑year yield slipped to about 4.10%, from roughly 4.13% on Monday.
- The 2‑year yield fell to around 3.56%, easing rate‑hike expectations at the margin.
- The 30‑year yield edged down to about 4.73%. [28]
Lower yields often signal investors rotating into bonds for safety, even when uncertainty over central‑bank policy remains high.
Currencies
The U.S. dollar index was broadly flat near 99.5, but moves under the surface reflected stress:
- The dollar held near a 9½‑month high versus the yen, though it gave up some ground late in the day. [29]
- Traditional safe‑haven currencies such as the Swiss franc and yen saw periods of strength as equities fell. [30]
Gold and oil
- Gold swung from losses to small gains, with spot prices hovering just above $4,000 an ounce, helped by the softer dollar and demand for protection against financial stress. [31]
- Oil prices were little changed to slightly lower, with U.S. crude around $60 a barrel and Brent near $64, as traders weighed Russian sanctions against expectations of a supply glut next year. [32]
What’s Driving the Global Sell-Off?
Today’s broad‑based decline reflects several overlapping themes rather than a single shock:
- Valuation hangover after an extraordinary rally
- Major indices in the U.S. and Europe hit records or multi‑year highs in recent months, powered by enthusiasm for AI and looser U.S. fiscal policy. Critics have long warned that earnings would need to catch up to justify those prices. [33]
- AI bubble fears moving to center stage
- The Bank of America fund‑manager survey showing AI as the top perceived risk, plus public comments from executives at Alphabet, JPMorgan and Klarna about frothy valuations, are reinforcing the narrative that parts of the market may have overshot. [34]
- Uncertainty over the Fed’s next move
- The Federal Reserve has already cut rates twice this year, but data gaps caused by the recent U.S. government shutdown and stubborn inflation have made the outlook for a much‑anticipated December rate cut less certain. [35]
- When the odds of near‑term rate cuts fall, richly valued growth and speculative assets — from AI leaders to alt‑coins — tend to bear the brunt.
- Earnings and macro cross‑currents
- Investors are bracing for Nvidia’s earnings on Wednesday, seen as a litmus test for whether the AI boom can still support sky‑high valuations in chips, cloud and data‑center spending. [36]
- Disappointing guidance from retailers such as Home Depot, along with patchy economic data emerging after the shutdown, is rekindling questions about the strength of consumer demand in the U.S. and Europe. [37]
How Global Indices Stand After Today
Putting the moves in context:
- The MSCI World Index closed at 4,267.49, down 0.88% on the day and roughly 3–4% below its November 12 peak, reflecting a broad de‑rating of global equities over the past week. [38]
- In the U.S., the S&P 500 has now fallen for four consecutive sessions, leaving it about 3–4% below levels seen just after October’s record run. [39]
- Europe’s FTSE 100, Stoxx 600 and Germany’s DAX have all surrendered much of their November gains, and Asia’s Nikkei and Kospi are back at levels last seen in early autumn. [40]
What to Watch Next
Looking beyond today’s moves, markets are fixated on three near‑term catalysts:
- Nvidia earnings (Wednesday, U.S. time)
- Any sign of slowing AI demand or tighter data‑center budgets could reinforce bubble concerns, while a strong beat might spark at least a short‑term relief rally in tech. [41]
- Delayed U.S. jobs data and other macro releases
- With official statistics slowly returning after the shutdown, investors will be parsing jobless claims, payrolls and inflation numbers for clues on whether the Fed can justify more rate cuts in 2026 — or needs to pause. [42]
- Central‑bank rhetoric in the U.S., UK and eurozone
- Comments from Federal Reserve officials, the Bank of England’s Huw Pill and European Central Bank policymakers will be watched closely for any shift in tone on inflation, growth and the appropriate pace of easing. [43]
Bottom line
November 18, 2025, will go down as one of the more consequential risk‑off days of the year, with equity indices across Asia, Europe and North America all lower, crypto deep in correction territory and volatility climbing.
For long‑term investors, the current pullback looks less like an outright crisis and more like a forceful reminder that even powerful themes such as AI and digital assets are not immune to gravity, interest rates or old‑fashioned valuation math.
This article is for information only and does not constitute investment advice. Always do your own research or consult a licensed financial adviser before making trading or investment decisions.
References
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