SYDNEY — Asian share markets slipped on Monday, November 2, as worries about the sustainability of the AI investment boom loomed over the tech sector, while the high price of oil limited the safe-haven appeal of sovereign bonds, Reuters reported.
Source: Reuters, Asia shares bend under AI stress; Apple earnings loom, November 2, 2026
Concerns about negative cash flow and the sheer scale of AI capex saw the cost of insuring against corporate defaults blow out last week, while gold hit a one-year low amid talk stressed investors were selling to raise money for margin calls, Reuters said. An added wrinkle is the midterm elections in the United States, where a win by Democrats in either or both houses could result in more political hurdles for data centres. Adding to the air of unease were withdrawals from Binance as the world's biggest cryptocurrency exchange went back online on Sunday after hackers stole billions from the platform last week.
Source: Reuters, Asia shares bend under AI stress; Apple earnings loom, November 2, 2026
Earnings week: Apple, AMD and Palantir — after Intel's 29% fall
All of which raises the stakes for earnings this week with Apple, AMD and Palantir set to report in the wake of Intel's near 29% tumble on Friday, Reuters reported. Analysts at Goldman Sachs expect capex by hyperscalers to almost double to $800 billion this year, and rise further to $1.2 trillion in 2027; at the same time, they see S&P 500 earnings-per-share growth of nearly 30% in 2026, slowing to 18% next year. "Earnings results have underscored the fundamental challenge facing equity investors — earnings growth is strong, but it is no longer accelerating," wrote Ben Snider, Goldman's chief US equity strategist. "Similarly, Q3 results support our view that AI investment spending will continue to grow but that the growth rate of AI capex is peaking." Yaani: $800 billion is 800 billion dollars of planned spending in a single year, rising to $1,200 billion next year — the biggest corporate building programme in history, and the reason any hint that returns are slowing now shakes markets from Tokyo to Toronto.
Source: Reuters, Asia shares bend under AI stress; Apple earnings loom, November 2, 2026
In Europe, EUROSTOXX 50 futures firmed 0.1%, while DAX futures were flat. On Wall Street, S&P 500 futures edged up 0.4%, while Nasdaq futures bounced 0.6%; the tech-heavy Nasdaq lost almost 7% in October for its worst month since the Liberation Day tariff rout of April 2025, Reuters said. TalkMarkets' week-ahead note put Friday's closes at Brent $113.10, gold $3,884.90 and the Nasdaq's worst month since March 2025 by its measure, with the US midterm elections on Tuesday, November 3, at the centre of the week's risk calendar.
Rates, oil and the data week ahead
The retreat in equities provided a reprieve to safe-haven bonds, with investors wondering if a sustained selloff in the stock market could deter the Federal Reserve from hiking interest rates in December, Reuters reported. Futures still imply a 72% chance of a quarter-point rate rise, but now only have 55 basis points of total tightening priced in, compared with more than 70 basis points a month ago. Yields on 10-year Treasuries nudged up to 4.952%, well off their October peak of 5.3645%, while 2-year yields stood at 4.612%. Among central banks meeting this week, markets are wagering on hikes from the Reserve Bank of Australia, the Bank of England and the Riksbank, while the Norges Bank is seen on hold. In currency markets, the euro was flat at $1.1156, while the dollar was barely changed at 157.62 yen.
Source: Reuters, Asia shares bend under AI stress; Apple earnings loom, November 2, 2026
For commodities, oil prices slipped after Iranian and Qatari officials held a third straight day of talks aimed at pushing for a deal to end the US-Israeli war on Iran: Brent futures dipped 1.5% to $111.72 a barrel, though that follows a 13.6% jump in October, while US crude futures eased 1.7% to $102.37 a barrel, Reuters reported. Non-interest-bearing gold bounced 0.6% to $3,898 an ounce, having fallen 6.8% last month. Economic data due this week includes the US ISM survey of manufacturing for October later on Monday, while the payrolls report is on Friday; median forecasts are for a 65,000 rise in jobs, after September's disappointing 29,000 gain, with the unemployment rate holding at 4.2%.
Source: Reuters, Asia shares bend under AI stress; Apple earnings loom, November 2, 2026
The week's tests arrive in order: US ISM manufacturing on Monday, the midterm elections on Tuesday, central-bank decisions including the Bank of England on Thursday, and US payrolls on Friday — with Apple, AMD and Palantir earnings in between. A sustained equity selloff, Reuters noted, could itself change the Federal Reserve's December rate calculus.