What happened: Late on Thursday, October 29, 2026 (shortly after midnight Eastern time), CNBC reported that Nasdaq-100 futures were down 2.1%, S&P 500 futures were down 1% and Dow futures were down 104 points. The drop followed after-hours declines in Amazon (about 6%) and Intel (about 21%) on their quarterly results.

Other points from CNBC's live coverage and Reuters:

  • In Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 2.63% and South Korea's Kospi fell 4.74%, with SK Hynix, Samsung Electronics, Tokyo Electron and Advantest lower
  • The Bank of Japan held its policy rate at 1.25% in an 8-1 vote, with one member preferring a hike to 1.5%, and said inflation is "generally consistent" with its 2% target for the first time since 2013
  • After hours, Reuters reported AI cloud stocks CoreWeave, Nebius and Iren fell 5.8% to 6.7%, PC makers HP and Dell fell 8% and 6.8%, and a 3x leveraged semiconductor ETF was down about 9%
  • Bitcoin traded below $78,000 after the Binance security incident

    • In Thursday's regular session, per Reuters, the Nasdaq Composite fell 1.37% and the S&P 500 fell 0.30%, led by Alphabet's 12.6% drop. CNBC noted that Friday, October 30, is the last trading day of October, with the Nasdaq on track for a monthly decline of about 2.5% and the S&P 500 on track for a gain of about 0.9%. Futures can change substantially before the 9:30 AM ET open.

    Educational content only, not financial advice. Options involve significant risk and are not suitable for every investor.

    Why This Matters for Options Traders

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    1. Gap risk at the open. Index options on QQQ, NDX and SPX did not trade while futures fell overnight. If the move holds, option prices will reprice all at once at the open, and short positions can open well past their strikes.

    2. Implied volatility and the VIX. Overnight drops in index futures often lift near-term implied volatility, and the VIX tends to rise when the S&P 500 falls. Higher IV makes protective puts more expensive and raises the premium (and risk) for option sellers.

    3. Concentration in mega-cap tech. Alphabet, Amazon and the semiconductor group are large weights in the Nasdaq-100, so a few names can drive most of the index move. QQQ options can react more sharply than SPX options on the same news.

    4. Month-end and weekly expirations. Friday is both the end of the month and a weekly expiration day for many index and ETF options. Short-dated options near the money carry high gamma, meaning their value and deltas can swing quickly with small moves.

    Common Ways Traders Think About This (Educational)

  • Defined risk: vertical spreads cap the maximum loss when the size of the open is uncertain.
  • Compare QQQ and SPX IV: checking the gap between Nasdaq and S&P implied volatility helps show where the market expects the larger move.
  • Wait for spreads to settle: bid-ask spreads are often widest in the first minutes after a gap; limit orders help control execution costs.

    • Key Takeaways

  • Nasdaq-100 futures were down about 2.1% and S&P 500 futures about 1% after Amazon and Intel results.
  • Asian chip stocks fell and the Bank of Japan held rates at 1.25% in a split vote.
  • Friday is month-end and a weekly expiration day, so gap risk and short-dated gamma matter for index options.

    • Sources

  • CNBC: Nasdaq-100 futures fall as Amazon and Intel swoon after earnings (live updates)
  • Reuters via Investing.com: Amazon burns cash, Intel flags weak PC demand as AI boom's costs ripple across markets
  • Reuters via Investing.com: Wall Street ends lower as Alphabet revenue miss revives AI capex jitters
  • OCC: Characteristics and Risks of Standardized Options

    • By the OptionsPilot Editorial Team. Published October 29, 2026, 9:30 PM PT. This article is for education only and is not investment advice. Options involve risk and are not suitable for all investors.