Daily Market Outlook - Friday, Nov. 14

By Patrick Munnelly of Tickmill

Friday, November 14, 2025 7:00 AM EST

A calculator sitting on top of a pile of money

Wall Street faced a sharp sell-off once again, ending a brief respite that followed the reopening of the U.S. government. Hawkish remarks from Federal Reserve officials, combined with anticipation of upcoming economic data, spurred traders to shed riskier assets, ranging from tech stocks to cryptocurrencies. With the optimism surrounding the government shutdown’s resolution already baked into the market, concerns over lofty valuations reemerged. This led to a notable pullback in high-flying tech stocks, while some analysts noted a shift toward more defensive sectors. The S&P 500 experienced its third drop of over 1% in just two weeks, a stark contrast to the previous three months, during which such declines happened only once. President Trump signed a bill to end the longest government shutdown in U.S. history, though it may take time for federal agencies to fully resume normal operations. Notably, the upcoming October jobs report will not include the unemployment rate, according to U.S. Chief Economic Adviser Kevin Hassett in an interview with Fox News’ America’s Newsroom. As for the Federal Reserve, traders are split on whether the central bank will cut interest rates in December. Fed Chair Jerome Powell previously stated that another rate reduction is “not a foregone conclusion”, emphasising that future decisions will depend on incoming data. However, some investors are concerned that missing economic data due to the shutdown could bolster arguments for maintaining current policy. Adding to the mix, Fed officials shared differing views in separate comments. The Fed’s Musalem urged caution given inflation remains above target, while the Fed’s Hammack suggested monetary policy should stay “somewhat restrictive”. On the other hand, the Fed’s Kashkari revealed he opposed the last rate cut and remains undecided about December’s decision.

Asian shares fell sharply on Friday, with MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific stocks outside Japan dropping 1.6%. This decline followed Wall Street's abrupt end to a four-day winning streak, as U.S. markets experienced their steepest single-day drop since April's tariff-related turmoil. Japan's Nikkei index slid 2%, while Australia's resource-heavy stocks lost 1.4%. South Korean markets saw a steep plunge of up to 3.6%, with losses intensifying throughout the day. In China, stocks dipped 0.9% after monthly activity data revealed slower-than-expected growth in October’s industrial production and retail sales. The disappointing figures quickly erased a brief rally in equity markets. October credit growth in China was notably weak, with total aggregate financing reaching RMB30.9trn from Jan-Oct, up from RMB27.1trn last year, but the monthly flow was disappointing. Credit growth for October was RMB815bn, the lowest since 2015. RMB loans contracted by -RMB20.1bn m/m, and government bond issuance slowed sharply to RMB489.3bn, the weakest since April ’24. Household borrowing continued to decline amid housing market struggles, while corporate lending remained flat, skewed towards SOEs. Despite slower credit growth, debt is rising faster than the economy, now at 314% of GDP (up from 301% last year). Most of this increase stems from government bond issuance, highlighting growing imbalances and reliance on exports.

Bitcoin has plunged further below 100K as the crypto benchmark trades in bear market territory, impacted by a new wave of risk aversion and a downturn in tech stocks that has revived concerns on Wall Street. The cryptocurrency dropped by as much as 3.9%, deepening a decline that has erased over $450 billion in value since early October. Previously reliable support sources—such as major investment funds, ETF investors, and corporate treasuries—have retreated, taking away a crucial support pillar for this year's rally and initiating a fresh period of market vulnerability.