World Digest — 31 Oct 2026

Friday delivered a punishing reality check across markets and geopolitics. The Nasdaq suffered its worst session since June, falling nearly 3%, as Intel plunged 25% — its worst day since the 1970s — and Amazon dropped 7% on disappointing earnings. The selloff wiped $⁠12 billion off the US government’s Intel stake and dragged the Nasdaq 100 about 10% below its October 6 record high. S&P revised Meta’s outlook to negative on cash flow concerns, and OpenAI reportedly cut its fundraising target amid the same AI-spending anxiety. Bitcoin briefly dipped below $⁠77,000 before recovering to $⁠77,323, with the $⁠6.3 billion Binance hack — the largest in crypto history — adding to the jitters. Crypto liquidations hit $⁠1.57 billion, though analysts at Cantor Fitzgerald and TD Cowen urged investors to buy the dip, arguing the breach is unlikely to derail the broader recovery.

Geopolitical risk escalated sharply in the Gulf. Iran’s IRGC said four supertankers carrying two million barrels of crude each hit mines in the Strait of Hormuz after navigating unauthorised waters, in a direct challenge to the US. Al Jazeera reports that Tehran is asserting its control over the strait, while the White House considers fresh military options after next week’s US midterms. Trump told reporters the war on Iran will “get wrapped up soon” as Vice President JD Vance pursued a separate diplomatic track.

The midterms themselves are reshaping political landscapes far beyond Washington. In Kansas, farmers turned on Trump over tariffs while in Michigan, Arab-American voters shifted away from the Republicans amid Trump’s attacks on Muslim candidate Abdul El-Sayed. In Israel, Netanyahu accused Palestinian Israeli parties of election fraud after they won a record 19 seats with 80% turnout — the highest since the 1990s — though the election commission found no evidence of systematic fraud. Meanwhile, the rare joint humanitarian convoy into Oleshky offered a momentary pause in the Ukraine war, and Youth-led protests swept Germany and France over rising prices and lack of prospects.

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