Quick Read
-
QQQ plunged 13% over the past month while SPY slid 5%, leaving the AI-heavy Nasdaq fund far more exposed to bubble fears.
-
Wealthy stockholders soured on the economy as sentiment among top stock owners fell 5%, while lower- and middle-wealth households grew more upbeat.
-
NVIDIA alone makes up about 8% of QQQ, while SPY holds Berkshire Hathaway and other companies that do not depend on AI spending.
-
Building a portfolio and living off one are two completely different skills, and almost nobody teaches the second. This problem is what The Definitive Guide to Retirement Income helps, and it is free today. Read more here. (Sponsor)
Average households have started using a phrase once reserved for professional traders. The University of Michigan released its preliminary November 2026 consumer survey on November 6, 2026. It found comments showing what survey director Joanne Hsu called "growing anxiety over a possible AI bubble."
The headline Index of Consumer Sentiment rose to 51.0 from 48.0 in October. That 6.3% gain only brought it back to the November 2025 reading of 51.0.
Consumers with the most money in stocks moved the other way. Their sentiment fell 5%, while lower- and middle-wealth households became more upbeat.
That split matters if you own the Invesco QQQ Trust( NASDAQ:QQQ ), which closed November 6 at $656.10, up 1.4%. The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust( NYSEARCA:SPY ) closed at $735.36, up 0.32%. Over the past month, though, QQQ fell 13.41% while SPY fell 5.39%.
Big Stockholders Soured While Everyone Else Improved
Hsu said most of the small increases in expected personal finances and business conditions came from political independents. The current conditions index rose to 51.0 from 46.7, and expectations rose to 50.9 from 48.8.
The AI-bubble finding comes from open-ended comments, and the survey attached no percentage to it, showing the idea has reached average households but not how many people hold it.
Now Available: The Definitive Guide to Retirement Income
Many successful investors eventually reach the same moment. The saving is done, the portfolio is built, and the question quietly changes from how much can I grow this to how much can I take out? Get that second question wrong and decades of good investing can come apart in a handful of years.
That is exactly what The Definitive Guide to Retirement Income helps answer. It covers what your retirement could actually cost, which income sources are worth using, and the withdrawal math that decides whether the money lasts. It is free today from Fisher Investments. Read More Here ›
The wealthiest stockholders own most of the AI trade, so they feel its losses first, and Hsu linked their fall to a relatively turbulent period in markets. Riding a mania is fine as long as you plan the exit, which is the whole argument of our free bubble survivor's handbook.
High Prices Still Dominate Household Worries
About 57% of consumers said, without being prompted, that high prices had eroded their living standards. That was up from 46% in February, and sentiment remains 10% below February's level.
October's reading was the second-lowest on record, behind only the May 2026 low of 44.8. November's reading is the highest since August's 51.7.
Survey Closed Before Thursday's Selloff
Interviews ran from October 20 to November 2, so they missed the midterm elections and the market's sharp selloff. On November 5, the S&P 500 fell 4.36%, and the Nasdaq Composite fell 5.52%.
The rebound on Friday was small. The S&P 500 rose 0.31% but still lost 2.68% for the week, and the VIX, a gauge of expected volatility, closed November 5 at 28.18.
Wealthy households account for a large share of spending, and portfolio losses tend to slow it. The final November reading, due November 20, will show whether Thursday's losses have reached sentiment.
Sticky Inflation Limits Help From Rate Cuts
Year-ahead inflation expectations fell to 4.3% from 4.7%. Long-run expectations slipped to 3.4%, which is still above the 2024 range of 2.8% to 3.2%.
With expectations that high, lower interest rates cannot do much to soften a tech selloff. October CPI, due November 10 at 8:30 a.m. ET, is the next test.
Concentrated AI Holdings Leave QQQ More Exposed Than SPY
QQQ sits about 14% below its 52-week high of $762.86. SPY is about 5.9% below its high, so most of the risk from concentrated AI holdings sits in QQQ.
As of June 30, NVIDIA( NASDAQ:NVDA ) alone made up 7.596756593966% of QQQ. Other chipmakers and the chip-equipment manufacturers added more exposure to the same chip and data center spending.
QQQ carries more concentrated AI risk than SPY. SPY still holds the large AI names. It also holds companies like Berkshire Hathaway( NYSE:BRK-B ) that do not depend on AI spending.
That risk eases if QQQ climbs back above its October 30 level of $690.49 before the November 20 final reading. If that reading instead shows big stockholders became gloomier after a hot CPI report, QQQ likely has further to fall.
Released: The Definitive Guide to Retirement Income
(Sponsor) Most people spend their entire working lives focusing on one thing: growing a pile of money. Then they retire and discover the skill they actually need is close to the opposite. Turning that pile into steady income, year after year, through good markets and bad, without ever running out.
It may be the least discussed and most consequential transition in personal finance, and plenty of otherwise careful investors walk into it with no real plan. That is exactly what The Definitive Guide to Retirement Income helps answer. It is a free guide from Fisher Investments covering what your retirement will really cost, where the cash flow should come from, and how much you can safely withdraw each year. Learn more here. Learn More Here ›
Contact editorial@247wallst.com for any questions or corrections.
