What A “Buzz Kill”: Tech Selloff Goes Global

The Friday FAAMG volatility is spreading to overseas markets on Monday, as tech stocks underperform globally, weighing down Asian and European equities.

The Stoxx 600 was down right out of the gate and would eventually test its 50-day moving average as the tech sector index SX8P fell as much as 2.7% on the session. “Sector valuation concerns are spreading from U.S. and Asia,” Bloomberg notes. The VSTOXX jumped 5%.

The risk-off mood gathered a bit of steam as the overnight session wore on with the yen rising and Treasury yields falling notably after Europe got started.

Bund futures rose as USDJPY dropped with stock futures as traders described flows as “mixed.”

With tech shouldering a disproportionate share of the burden this year in terms of driving the equity rally, it looks like things may now be going into reverse.

“There’s a chance U.S. internet technology stocks that have propelled a global stock rally will now serve as a buzz kill,” Mitsuo Shimizu, deputy general manager at Japan Asia Securities in Tokyo said this morning.

Meanwhile, the pound drifted lower as political uncertainty weighs.

“Theresa May’s Conservative Party is expected to form a minority government with the Democratic Unionist Party’s support, without a formal coalition or pact,” Moody’s said in a new report, adding that the “election result increases fiscal risks and will hamper Brexit talks.” The outcome, the ratings agency says, is credit negative.

In the Mideast, the Qatar chaos continued with 12-month riyal forwards climbing 81bps in early Doha trading to 625 against the dollar, the highest level since at least 2001. Fitch isn’t optimistic, and placed Qatar on watch for downgrade, citing “heightened uncertainty resulting from decision of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Egypt and some other Arab countries to sever diplomatic and logistical ties.”