Markets are facing a spooky Friday as tech stocks and cryptocurrencies take a major hit. The Nasdaq is set for its worst session of the week, with tech giants like Amazon and Intel leading the decline. Amazon's shares are down over 7% in premarket trading after missing earnings and revenue expectations, despite strong growth in its AWS division. Intel's stock is plummeting over 25% after issuing weaker guidance for the fourth quarter, citing continued softness in the PC market.
The crypto world is reeling from the biggest heist in its history. Binance, the world's largest crypto exchange, revealed a security incident impacting $6.3 billion in assets. Co-CEO Richard Teng attributed the breach to a compromised DevOps engineer's laptop and promised to cover all losses. The hack has sparked speculation of state-backed involvement, with North Korea being a prime suspect. Bitcoin fell below $78,000 on concerns over the breach, with major crypto firms freezing billions in related assets.
Among the big movers, Reddit is also falling over 20% after its CEO warned of a potential double-digit decline in daily unique visitors. Alphabet shares are flat after a 12% drop during Thursday's trading. Analysts are divided on whether this is a moment of reckoning for the tech sector or a buying opportunity. Meanwhile, energy stocks are in focus as ExxonMobil and Chevron report earnings, with Chevron topping forecasts and sending shares higher in premarket trading.
In political news, President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance have canceled several planned appearances in the final stretch of the midterm campaign. Trump will instead hold tele-rallies to reach voters by phone in a '72-hour sprint' before Tuesday's elections.