Selloff Sweeps Global Markets

Summary of Selloff Sweeps Global Markets

by The Wall Street Journal

14m•November 18, 2025
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Overview of Selloff Sweeps Global Markets

This episode of The Wall Street Journal's "What's News" (hosted by Caitlin McCabe) covers a broad morning roundup: a widening global market sell-off driven in part by worries about an overheated AI-driven rally; a House vote expected on releasing Justice Department files related to Jeffrey Epstein and ensuing fallout; President Trump’s comments on selling F-35 jets to Saudi Arabia ahead of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visit; and how AI adoption is reshaping workplaces and career expectations.

Market sell-off: what happened and why it matters

  • Quick snapshot

    • Major stock indexes fell across Asia and Europe; U.S. futures pointed lower.
    • S&P 500 posted its largest three-day percentage decline since April.
    • S&P 500 and Nasdaq fell below their 50-day moving averages — a technical signal investors watch for momentum shifts.
    • Bitcoin fell below $90,000 (per the episode) and gold also declined.
    • The VIX (volatility index) rose to levels not seen since April.

  • Main drivers

    • Concerns the AI-driven rally may be a bubble: investors are reexamining big AI infrastructure investments, noting much is debt-funded and questioning whether future revenues will justify spending.
    • Comments from Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai warning that “if the AI bubble were to burst no company would be immune” heightened fears.
    • The recent government shutdown reduced the flow of economic data, leaving markets "flying blind" until data resumes (notably the September jobs report due Thursday).
    • Risk-off sentiment has spread to cryptocurrencies and commodities, amplifying market volatility.

  • Reporters: Hannah Miao (Shanghai) provided market color and technical context.

House vote and Epstein files; political fallout

  • House expected to vote on releasing the Justice Department’s Epstein-related files. President Trump ultimately did not block the vote and signaled he would sign legislation to release the files if passed by Congress.
  • Over 20,000 Epstein emails were made public recently by the House Oversight Committee.
  • Fallout: Former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers said he would step back from public commitments after appearing in the released emails; Senator Elizabeth Warren urged Harvard to cut ties with him.
  • Context: A number of Republicans were expected to back the measure, signaling some weakening of Trump’s sway within the GOP.

Trump, Saudi Arabia and F-35 sales

  • President Trump indicated the U.S. would sell F-35 fighters to Saudi Arabia ahead of MBS’s White House visit.
  • Concerns raised:
    • Potential erosion of Israel’s qualitative military edge in the Middle East.
    • Loss of leverage in efforts to secure normalization (Abraham Accords) between Saudi Arabia and Israel.
    • Historical U.S. policy has typically reserved such advanced fighters for close allies; granting them to Saudi signals a rehabilitation of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in U.S. eyes despite the Khashoggi killing.
    • Saudi ambitions also include access to cutting-edge AI chips (e.g., NVIDIA), subject to export controls and budget constraints.
  • Reporter: Elliott Brown provided geopolitical implications.

AI at work: adoption, pressure, and job risk

  • Trend: Companies are aggressively pushing AI adoption; not just training but using incentives and penalties to ensure employees apply AI in daily work.
    • Tactics include cash prizes, desirable assignments, and linking AI use to performance evaluations; some organizations have pushed out employees who refuse to use AI tools.
  • Worker attitudes (Gallup survey cited)
    • Over 40% of U.S. workers who don’t use AI say it’s because they don’t believe it would help.
    • About 11% said resistance stems from unwillingness to change how they work.
  • Bottom line: For many employees, the immediate risk is not direct replacement by AI but being left behind or disadvantaged for not integrating AI into their workflows.
  • Reporter: Lindsay Ellis (workplace and careers) covered these points; listeners are pointed to a related episode of Tech News Briefing.

Key takeaways and suggested watch-list

  • Markets

    • Watch S&P/Nasdaq behavior relative to the 50-day moving average for momentum signals.
    • Monitor the September jobs report and resumption of other government economic releases for clearer macro guidance.
    • Track AI-related capital spending and debt-financed infrastructure announcements — they’re central to current re-pricing.
    • Keep an eye on Bitcoin, VIX, and gold as barometers of risk appetite and volatility.

  • Politics & geopolitics

    • Follow House action and any further document releases tied to Epstein for reputational and political fallout.
    • Monitor U.S.-Saudi announcements (F-35 approvals, AI chip export decisions) and any implications for regional dynamics with Israel.

  • Careers

    • Workers should consider proactively learning practical AI tools used in their industry; non-adoption can affect assignments and performance reviews.
    • Employers are likely to continue combining training with incentives/requirements to accelerate adoption.

Notable quotes

  • Sundar Pichai (Alphabet CEO): If the AI bubble were to burst “no company would be immune.”
  • President Trump (on releasing Epstein files): “We done a great job… I’m all for it. You know, we’ve already given 50,000 pages.”

Additional references from the episode

  • Economic Indicator series — ep. 3 on heavy truck sales for clues on growth (recommended for investors).
  • Tech News Briefing — interview with Lindsay Ellis for deeper reporting on workplace AI adoption.
  • Hosts/reporters: Caitlin McCabe (host), Hannah Miao, Elliott Brown, Lindsay Ellis.

Produced as The Wall Street Journal’s AM edition of What's News (Tuesday, Nov. 18).