Big Tech Is Ending October in the Red. Healthcare Is Up 9%

Brad Roth
October 30, 2026

TL;DR

• The AI spending trade broke for a second day. Amazon is down 6.6% before the open after its report, a day after Alphabet's 12.64% drop.

• Nine of eleven sectors rose Thursday anyway. Healthcare led at 2.40%, and it's 21.4% of the even-weight strategy.

• Today is October's last session. Through Thursday, healthcare is up 9.27% for the month and the Nasdaq 100 is down 3.30%.

Market Pulse

Futures as of 7:15 AM ET, commodities as of 7:23 AM ET, yields as of 7:20 AM ET, currencies as of 7:23 AM ET

• S&P 500 futures are down 1.02% at 7,675.25.

• Nasdaq 100 futures are down 2.46% at 28,835.25.

• Dow futures are up 0.18% at 52,605.00.

• Russell 2000 futures are down 0.51% at 2,852.70.

Thursday split in two. The S&P 500 fell 0.38%, the Nasdaq 100 1.42% and the Dow 0.37%. The Russell 2000 rose 0.97%. Nine of eleven sectors gained. Healthcare led at 2.40%, then real estate at 2.21%. Communication services fell 1.87% and technology 1.18%.

• Brent is $113.57, up 2.50%. West Texas is $104.27, up 2.23%.

• Gold is $3,979.92, down 1.28%. Silver is off 3.73% at $50.43.

• The three-month bill yields 4.098%. The two-year is 4.563% and the ten-year 4.904%, down 9.3 and 8.0 basis points.

• Euro/dollar is 1.1197. The dollar buys 157.10 yen. The VIX is 19.07. Bitcoin closed Thursday at $77,704, down 0.37%.

• Amazon is down 6.6% before the open at $228.09. Apple is down 1.5% at $343.60.

• The Employment Cost Index lands at 8:30, with 0.8% expected for the quarter. Chicago PMI follows at 9:45, and the Fed's Mary Daly speaks at noon.

THOR Risk Gauge

Neutral, unchanged from last week. Thursday's gains reached nine of eleven sectors, and the ten-year is back under 5%. A 2.46% hole in Nasdaq 100 futures, a VIX near 19 and Brent at $113 keep the read in the middle. The index strategy is fully invested, and the even-weight strategy runs 61.0% in stocks with 39.5% in Treasury bills.

The THOR View

The selling is about the AI bill. Alphabet fell 12.64% Thursday as investors balked at its data-center spending. Amazon reported last night and is down 6.6% this morning on the same worry. The losses sit in the companies writing the checks. Most of the market went up while it happened.

Healthcare is the even-weight strategy's largest piece at 21.4%. It was the best of eleven sectors Thursday, up 2.40%, and closed 0.4% under its 52-week high. Through Thursday the sector is up 9.27% for October. Hospitals and drug makers don't run on a capex budget.

Financials are 20.5%. They rose 1.44% Thursday and are up 6.63% for the month. Card networks and brokers earn on activity, and activity didn't slow. Technology is the smallest stock piece at 19.1%. It fell 1.18% Thursday and is down 3.58% for October. Equal weights keep any one sector from getting more than its share of the vote.

Bonds and oil disagree this morning. Brent is up 2.50%, which normally pushes yields higher. Instead the two-year fell 9.3 basis points to 4.563%. The bond market is pricing slower growth ahead of oil-driven inflation. Bills are 39.5% of the even-weight strategy, and the three-month yield barely moved.

The index strategy runs 33.9% Dow, 33.4% S&P 500 and 32.8% Nasdaq 100. Through Thursday, October has the Dow up 2.79% and the Nasdaq 100 down 3.30%. That six-point spread is the case for owning all three in near-equal pieces. This morning repeats it, with Dow futures green and Nasdaq 100 futures down 2.46%.

Signal Watch

THOR Index Rotation — As of 10/29/26

Fully invested, and the Dow is now the largest piece by 1.1 points. The pieces drift with prices between index calculations, so October's Dow strength shows up in the weights.

THOR Low Volatility — As of 10/29/26

Two of the three stock pieces rose more than 1.4% Thursday. Healthcare now leads technology by 2.3 points. The system owns trends that have confirmed, and the rest stays out.

THOR AdaptiveRisk Dynamic — As of 10/29/26

The mix runs 45.2% equity, 18.5% alternatives, 15.4% commodity, 14.8% specialty currency and 6.1% fixed income. The two energy positions together are 10.8%, and they're on the right side of Brent's 2.50% move this morning. The leveraged Nasdaq 100 fund slipped to 7.7% from 8.0%.

One Thing to Watch

The Employment Cost Index at 8:30, with 0.8% expected after 0.9% last quarter. Wages are the stickiest part of inflation, and two Fed voters already wanted a hike this week. A cool number keeps the two-year under 4.6% and gives financials, 20.5% of the even-weight strategy, a calmer rate backdrop into November.

Brad Roth / CIO, THOR Financial Technologies

This content reflects the opinions, analyses, and research of THOR Financial Technologies as of the date published. It is provided for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice and should not be relied upon as the basis for any investment decision. Past performance doesn't guarantee future results, and all investments involve risk. For more information, please go to: thorft.com