Investors Rotated Out of the AI Trade and Geopolitical Tensions Soared. The

Stocks plunged on Friday as traders continued to rotate out of the AI trade and geopolitical tensions continued to climb.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.34%, while the S&P 500 did so 1.09%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite underperformed, plummeting 2.14% and closing its worst week since June.

Semiconductor companies led the decline, having been hit this week over concerns about competition from China.

Oil prices also soared on Friday as geopolitical tensions continue to escalate, particularly in the Middle East and between Russia and Ukraine. Brent crude, the international benchmark is trading around $110 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate, the U.S. benchmark, is above $100 a barrel.

Both Kyiv and Moscow are targeting each other’s energy grids. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is also dealing with a new fallout with U.S. counterpart Donald Trump.

Trump has called Kyiv’s decision to resume attacks against Russian refineries a “disgrace.” Zelenskyy, on his end, said the decision was a result of Moscow not abiding by an energy ceasefire declared by Trump during the weekend. “There’s plenty of other targets; they don’t have to hit,” Trump said in an interview on Thursday.

“Zelenskyy is not a good guy for us to deal with” Trump added. “I think they actually both would like to see it end, but I think I find Zelenskyy to be more difficult to deal with than (Russian President Vladimir) Putin.”

Zelenskyy has also taken aim at Trump. In another interview with British commentator Piers Morgan on Wednesday, Zelenskyy said he felt let down by his dealings with Putin, including a deal to release hundreds of barrels of diesel due to high global prices. Zelenskyy claimed the lifting of sanctions would allow Russia to press on with the invasion.

When asked by Morgan if he felt “betrayed by what was happening,” Zelenskyy said “really, yes.” However, he noted that Ukraine’s relationship with the U.S. mattered more than his personal feelings. “Our country has to survive, and we count on our real partners, strategic partners, the United States and President Trump.”

Elsewhere, at least nine tankers and cargo ship have been attacked in the Strait of Hormuz over the past week. Crude exports, which had hit prewar levels in September, have pulled back. They now stand at about 70% of such figures, according to Kpler.

Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) chief Ali Ozmaei also said on Wednesday that Tehran is “impatient to sink American warships.”

“We are waiting for U.S. warships to approach the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz so we can sink them. We are counting down every moment until this happens,” he added in a televised interview with local television.