Global Asset Allocation Team Market Update – November 2026
Risk appetite deteriorated in October amid a raft of disappointing earnings results, ongoing tensions in the Middle East, and an explicit tightening bias at global central banks. Notably, some uninspiring earnings results in the megacap technology space stoked concerns over the sustainability of the Artificial Intelligence (AI) trade – and particularly regarding whether the revenues generated from the massive spending binge will be enough to justify the sky-high valuations. At the same time, escalating hostilities in the Middle East pushed oil prices markedly higher and revived inflation concerns – adding to investors’ unease last month.
Global equity markets (-1.7%) declined in October. The S&P 500 (-0.9%) retreated – though there was a profound rotation beneath the headlines. With losses concentrated in some heavyweight megacap stocks, the equal-weighed index gained +5.0%. The Nasdaq (-6.7%) posted its worst month since March 2025, while the “Magnificent-7”group of stocks declined -4.7%. By contrast, the S&P/TSX (+1.1%) managed to post positive results – thanks to solid performance in the energy (+8.7%) and financials (+3.2%) sectors that offset a challenging month for gold stocks (-13.1%). The MSCI EAFE fell -0.8% – while the MSCI gauge of emerging market stocks (-8.1%) underperformed by a wide margin – reflecting steep losses in technology stocks that pulled South Korea’s Kospi Index (an AI bellwether) down 15%.
[…]
Most Recent
