European equities remained under heavy selling pressure through the middle of Friday's session, with every major index in the red, after a sharp technology-led slump on Wall Street and a steep overnight fall in Asia. According to Corriere della Sera, the trigger is investor concern that the Democratic victory in the US midterm elections could bring stricter oversight of artificial intelligence and data centres.
Milan's FTSE Mib was down 1.3% and slipped back below the 50,000-point mark, the paper reported. Frankfurt was the weakest of the major European markets, losing 2.3%, while London fell 2.2% and Paris gave up 1.77%. Amsterdam was off 1.39% and Madrid 1.37%.
Why it matters
The session shows how directly the AI investment story is now wired into global share prices. Corriere della Sera reports that New York's three main indices lost more than three trillion dollars in a single chaotic session on Thursday, with technology stocks falling as much as 6.4% before paring losses to 5.5%. The S&P 500 dropped 4.4% to its lowest level since April 2025, which the paper says indicates the selloff spread beyond companies directly tied to AI infrastructure.
The political reading investors are applying is that a dominant Democratic win could slow the buildout that has driven the technology rally. Analysts cited by Corriere della Sera expect market volatility to persist at least until January, when the Democratic approach to AI policy may become clearer.
Asia takes the hardest hit
Tokyo's close was the most dramatic move of the day: the Japanese index fell 5.96% to 57,434 points, according to the paper, following the previous day's rout in US tech shares. South Korea also fell sharply, with Japan and Korea leading losses across the region.
Futures pointed to a partial recovery in New York, with Nasdaq futures up about 1.35% ahead of the open. Corriere della Sera reports that some analysts regard the rebound in technology names as technical rather than a change in sentiment. In Milan, Technoprobe and STMicroelectronics each gained around 2.5% and Prysmian added 1.4%.
Jobs data beats forecasts
Macroeconomic releases offered a counterweight. Corriere della Sera reports that the US added 165,000 non-farm jobs in October, well above the 59,000 analysts had expected, while the unemployment rate fell to 4.1% from 4.2% against forecasts of no change. Attention also turns to US consumer confidence figures.
In commodities, natural gas traded in Amsterdam fell 2.5% to 88.4 euros per megawatt hour, extending a decline, while oil edged higher. West Texas Intermediate for December delivery rose 0.49% to 90.96 dollars a barrel and Brent for January gained 0.56% to 98.84 dollars.
On currency markets the dollar strengthened against major peers, with the euro at 1.1177 against the dollar, down from 1.1217 at the previous close. The dollar stood at 158.24 yen and the euro at 176.86 yen.
Government bonds moved within a narrow range. The spread between Italian BTPs and German Bunds widened to 110 basis points from 109 at the previous close, with the ten-year Italian yield at 4.32% from 4.34%.
Winners and losers in Milan
Among individual Italian stocks, Tenaris rose 1.63% after analysts welcomed its results and following new supply contracts linked to development of the Cronos gas field off Cyprus, Corriere della Sera reports. Amplifon gained 1.45% after the European Commission cleared its acquisition of GN's hearing business.
At the other end, Nexi fell 3.7% the day after reporting results, Generali lost 3.1% and Banco BPM shed 2.57%. MPS slipped 0.98% despite higher third-quarter profit; the bank said its evaluation of the voluntary tender offer from Intesa Sanpaolo, down 1.6%, is continuing.
The next test is whether the New York open confirms the tentative tech rebound or extends the selloff into a second session.
