The AI Selloff Is Back as Korean IPO Shock Spooks Tech Stocks

Just how bad are the artificial-intelligence jitters right now?

Well, South Korean data-center infrastructure company Elice made its trading debut overnight armed with 200% revenue growth and retail demand 400 times oversubscribed. And the stock plunged 32%.

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That’s how bad.

Korean trading is notoriously volatile, but AI spending and debt fears are very much back in focus in the U.S. too this morning— CoreWeave was falling along with Oracle, IREN and Marvell. Chip stocks only just snapped their nine-day losing streak but are already back in the red.

Can anything ease the fears? Elon Musk will have a good go at doing so when SpaceX reports earnings after the close, though it’s a test even of his influence. It could be a wild ride for the stock and the broader AI trade.

One way to stay calm is to look away from the tech sector. The Dow and S&P 500 are doing just fine even as oil prices hit $111 a barrel and after mixed reactions to earnings from GE Aerospace , General Motors and 3M.

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📈 Here’s what’s happening in markets today:

• The tech selloff is back as AI spending fears mount.
• CoreWeave, SpaceX, Netflix, IREN, AMD, and more stocks that explain today’s market.
• SpaceX earnings should be a roller coaster for the stock.
• GM announced a massive new share buyback.
• GE Aerospace reports strong earnings again. What will it take to lift the stock?
• 3M is an AI data center play now. An expanded deal with Amazon boosts the stock.
• Micron stock falls amid three warning signals.
• Tesla stock, down 18% in 2026, is waiting for these 3 things.
• Northrop Grumman’s 2027 earnings outlook calls for more growth.
• Halliburton stock rises on earnings beat as Middle East leads the surge.
• South Korea’s ‘CoreWeave’ IPO disaster was poor timing. What it means for AI sentiment.
• Equifax stock rises as mortgage revenue jumps 15%.

Created with Highcharts 9.0.1Source: FactSetNote: futures contractsAs of Oct. 20, 9:05 a.m. ET

Created with Highcharts 9.0.1Dow industrialsS&P 500Nasdaq Oct. 19Oct. 20-1.0-0.8-0.6-0.4-0.200.20.40.6%

🚀 Elon Musk is giving SpaceX shares away. Who gets them.

Elon Musk says he’ll give one of his SpaceX shares to every kid in America, similar to Anthropic’s idea to allocate 5% of its stock to a public benefit fund. Musk’s idea would add up to about $10 billion at current levels, assuming it’s just for 18 and under. It also represents a little more than 1% of the six billion SpaceX shares Musk controls. Read more here.

🗼 France’s debt troubles are deepening. What’s at stake.

Soaring government borrowing costs, large deficits, an approaching election, and political gridlock over how to repair the nation’s deteriorating finances. It sounds like a U.S. problem, but this is about France, Europe’s second-largest economy and one of the biggest bond markets in the world. Read here for why investors should pay attention.

🚜 Farms face a triple whammy on costs

The world’s farms are about to be hit by a triple whammy that could cause food prices to spike even further next year, according to S&P Global. Farms have already been dealing with a broad set of challenges brought on by the Iran war, which has reduced shipments of fertilizers. But new pressures are coming, too. Read more here.

🥤 Coca-Cola’s KFC win is about more than just soda

KFC’s switch from PepsiCo to Coca-Cola will have a limited financial impact on either beverage company, but it highlights a bigger win for Coke: convincing restaurants that it can help them attract customers and get them to spend more on more than just drinks. It comes just after Marriott made the same switch.

🏠 Here’s a bad sign for home sale margins: Prices slashed

More home builders in October said they cut house prices compared with any other time this decade, the National Association of Home Builders said Monday. It’s a sign of the impact of swiftly rising mortgage rates—and a bad omen for investors waiting for signs of a bottom on home sale margins.

⚡ Forget tech. Energy is going to be the big earnings winner

As energy companies like ExxonMobil begin reporting earnings, the biggest questions they face now are about what they plan to do with all the cash they’re making, and whether they will seize this opportunity to boost drilling. For more on the outlook for the sector, read here.

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🌿 Curaleaf’s bid for Canada’s biggest weed producer isn’t over

The battle for control of Canada’s biggest weed producer isn’t over. Aurora Cannabis urged its shareholders to reject Curaleaf Holding’s sweetened offer. Now Curaleaf is saying Aurora doesn’t allow it the same access to due diligence it has offered others. Read about the latest in the saga here.

💬 Quote of the day:

France is now in clear crisis and decoupling from global developed bond markets. — Stephen Coltman, head of macro at 21shares

Other headlines moving markets:

• Warren Buffett should emulate Musk and give Berkshire shares away.
• Investors should sort portfolios by liquidity not just asset classes.
• What the regional bank crisis can tell us about the CoreWeave selloff.
• 8 stocks that are riskier than they look.
• Why Wall Street doubts PayPal’s turnaround.
• Ignore conventional wisdom. Higher bond yields would lift this stock market.
• The IRS is taking a closer look at 351 exchanges.
• Apple stock escaped the AI downturn. What’s next?
• Why Amazon’s stock has 40% upside.
• Netflix needs an earnings win to turn the stock around.
• United Airlines earnings land next. Only 1 thing can save the sector’s stocks.

— Edited by Liz Moyer, Stacy Ozol, and Rupert Steiner

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