Wall Street slides on rate hike fears; Europe gains despite mixed earnings

Wall Street declined this week due to anticipated December interest rate hikes in the US and Europe and a selloff in US technology stocks, while European markets gained ground despite mixed earnings. Upcoming earnings reports are expected to keep volatility high and cause sharp swings in major indexes. Notable losers included Alphabet, which fell on negative free cash flow, and ServiceNow, which declined despite strong revenue. The Fed and ECB left rates unchanged, but the ECB announced Christine Lagarde's early departure. Bitcoin fell for a fourth week following a major Binance cyberattack, and investors are now focused on US midterm elections.