The Globe and Mail reports in its Saturday edition that U.S. and Canadian stocks ended a rocky month with a thud on Friday, with both Nasdaq and S&P/TSX Composite Index dropping as worries intensified over heavy AI-related spending in the tech sector. A Reuters dispatch to The Globe says all three major U.S. stock indexes slumped. The Canadian index lost 629 points to close at 35,620.03, as weakness in technology stocks spilled north of the border, and also as gold fell sharply on prospects that the Federal Reserve will be hiking interest rates again soon as crude oil prices stay elevated. The tech rout was sparked by disappointing quarterly results from Intel and Amazon released on Thursday. Intel shares plunged 28.6 per cent. For the month, the Toronto Stock Exchange was up 1.09 per cent after falling 2.85 per cent in September. The TSX technology sector Friday fell 3 per cent, with Shopify down 5.7 per cent. The price of gold fell 3.5 per cent, hitting a one-year low. Shares of TFI International tumbled 17.2 per cent after quarterly results missed estimates. U.S. crude oil futures settled 2.1 per cent higher at $104.12 (U.S.) a barrel on the potential for escalation in the Iran war after the midterm elections.