Poor results from microchip maker Qualcomm and fears that a Democrat majority US Congress could tighten artificial intelligence (AI) regulations sparked a fresh sell off in tech stocks on Thursday.
Technology-focused benchmarks tumbled. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index in the US had plunged 11 per cent by midafternoon Irish time.
Dublin
Greencoat Renewables added 0.87 per cent after reporting €11.9 million profit for the first half of the year.
Food group Glanbia shed 3 per cent to €21.22. Dealers said the fall followed a 12 per cent gain on Wednesday, still leaving the stock well into positive territory.
RM Block
Ryanair dipped 1.38 per cent to €24.98. Kerry Group added 0.8 per cent, edging the stock past €100 to €100.80.
London
The FTSE 100 gave back strong early gains on Thursday to close lower after the Bank of England increased interest rates and signalled that it could put up borrowing charges further.
Polar Capital Technology Trust fell 6.6 per cent to 543. Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust shed 4.8 per cent to 1,434. Allianz Technology Trust was down 7.1 per cent at 602.
Guinness parent Diageo toasted a 3.2 per cent rise to 1,871.5 after reporting stronger-than-expected quarterly results. A decline in sales in North America proved less than feared, allowing the company to reiterate forecasts for full-year profits.
The London-listed brewer and distiller, which also owns Smithwicks ale, Rockshore lager, and premium scotches, Lagavulin and Caol Ila, said net sales grew 1.2 per cent to $4.93 billion (€4.39 billion) in the three months ended September 30th from $4.88 billion during the same period in 2025.
Clothing chain Next rose 2.5 per cent to 15,990 as it kept its annual profit guidance unchanged despite a faster-than-expected rise in full-price sales in the third quarter, led by its international business.
Europe
The pan-European Stoxx 600 index closed 0.38 per cent lower at 654.87 points after a rally in the continent’s equities fizzled out once US markets opened.
The shift dragged the index back from close to an all-time high in earlier trading. Regional bourses were mixed, however, with French and Spanish benchmark indexes ending higher.
Technology stocks collectively fell 3.2 per cent to their lowest level in nearly two months, tracking losses on Wall Street where the tech-heavy Nasdaq was poised to confirm a correction by Thursday evening.
Computer chip-linked stocks were among the biggest decliners on the Stoxx 600. Soitec slumped 16.7 per cent, while Infineon fell 8.5 per cent and Aixtron declined 9.8 per cent. AI heavyweight ASML retreated 6.6 per cent and Siltronic slid 12.3 per cent.
Defence stocks fell 2.6 per cent, weighed down by a 16.1 per cent drop in Rheinmetall after the company cut its 2026 sales forecast for the second time in three months.
Air France-KLM gained 12 per cent after beating third-quarter earnings expectations, while renewable energy firm Orsted rose 3.5 per cent after its strong results.
Aker BP fell 5.6 per cent after BP sold a stake in the Norwegian oil and gas company.
New York
The tech-heavy US Nasdaq share index was on track for its worst day in 18 months after slumping by up to 5 per cent on Thursday on signs that the AI industry faced tougher regulation following this week’s US midterms elections.
Chip stocks led the slump, with memory maker SanDisk tumbling by 19 per cent and hard drive maker Western Digital falling by 16.5 per cent.
Qualcomm slid 10 per cent after reporting poorer-than-expected sales of its microchips to smartphone manufacturers.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average of 30 large US companies was down more than 1,000 points by mid-afternoon Irish time, a fall of 2 per cent, to 52,264 points.
Nvidia, the chipmaker at the heart of the AI boom, was the top faller on the index, down 6.7 per cent, followed by bank Goldman Sachs, which fell 5.7 per cent. – Additional reporting by Press Association and Reuters
