$100bn stock movements expose ‘fragility’ in market rally

Good morning and welcome back. In today’s newsletter:

• Wall Street stocks’ wild swings

• HSBC third-quarter profit falls 14%

• Apple services unit redefining its business

• The world’s best-performing stock market

We begin on Wall Street, where daily share price swings worth hundreds of billions of dollars — powered by Big Tech — are becoming commonplace.

What happened: Individual stocks have gained or lost more than $100bn in market value in one day 119 times this year, the highest annual total on record.

Why it matters: The increase in 12-figure stock movements partly reflects the size of companies such as Nvidia, Microsoft and Apple, which are each worth more than $3tn.

Even accounting for the market’s growth, this year’s moves have been extraordinary. Bank of America analysis shows that 2025 has already beaten last year’s record number of “fragility events” — when prices move well outside their usual range — in Big Tech stocks.

“We have large-cap stocks moving 10, 20, 30 per cent in a day,” said Abhi Deb, head of global cross-asset quant investment strategy at BofA. “That kind of price action used to be rare.” Find out what’s driving the activity.

Here’s what else we’re keeping tabs on today:

• Argentina: Investors are weighing whether the optimism will persist after Javier Milei’s party won a big victory in elections, prompting the country’s currency and government bonds to surge.

• UK: The employment rights bill returns to the House of Lords, after the Labour government made amendments to the controversial legislation.

• Results: BNP Paribas, Ferrovial, Iberdrola, Invesco, KPN, Novartis, Nucor, PayPal, Royal Caribbean, UnitedHealth Group and Visa report earnings. See our Week Ahead newsletter for a fuller list.

Ask an Expert: Will China win the AI race? Submit your questions to the FT’s John Thornhill and Eleanor Olcott ahead of their live Q&A on November 13.

Five more top stories

1. HSBC’s profits declined by 14 per cent in the third quarter as Europe’s largest lender presses ahead with a sweeping restructuring plan. Pre-tax profits fell year on year to $7.3bn in the three months to September 30, with net income including credit impairments down to $16.8bn, below analyst expectations. Read details of the earnings report.

2. Apple is set to top $100bn in annual revenues from its services arm for the first time. The unit has doubled in size over the past five years, despite pressure on the App Store. Read why the business has become a vital source of growth.

3. UK chancellor Rachel Reeves is set to face a larger than expected downgrade to productivity forecasts in the Budget, which analysts believe could deliver a blow to public finances of more than £20bn. Read the full report.

4. Europe’s drive to boost its ammunition output has run into political resistance in Italy. Local officials are opposing Rheinmetall’s use of new production lines at its explosives plant in Sardinia, after criticism from environmentalists and anti-war activists. Read more on the stand-off.

5. Exclusive: Kirkland & Ellis has given its lawyers training on their communication style as the world’s largest law firm by revenue tries to combat a reputation for uncooperative behaviour in negotiations between its private equity clients and their investors. Read the full report.

The Big Read

After decades of trying to straddle the divide between China and the US, many countries in south-east Asia are finding it harder to manage close ties with both superpowers. But amid Washington’s barrage of tariffs, Asean countries are finding Beijing to be more reliable. Will President Donald Trump push the region towards China?

We’re also reading . . .

• Regulatory paradox: Europe needs to simplify its rules on markets and finance as well as clarify how they are applied, writes Lorenzo Bini Smaghi, chair of Société Générale.

• Making inroads: China will “save” European auto jobs but will also end up devouring western rivals, the former Stellantis chief has warned.

• Trade-off: Bill Gates has called for the UN to make a “major strategic pivot” from a “doomsday view” of climate goals towards funding vaccines.

• Trump’s Asia tour: Trump and Japanese leader Sanae Takaichi have promised “a new golden age” for their countries’ alliance.

Chart of the day

South Korea’s Kospi has gained more than 68 per cent this year, a remarkable turnaround for an index whose stocks traded below a price-to-book ratio of one for much of the past three years. What is driving the world’s best-performing stock market?

Take a break from the news . . . 

Jeans aren’t exactly new. But this year they have hit the headlines thanks to viral ad campaigns, red-carpet appearances and a renewed popularity with shoppers. The comeback is reeling in serious money.