Typhoon Matmo makes landfall in Guangdong

Typhoon Matmo, the 21st typhoon of the year that intensified into a severe typhoon early Sunday morning, made landfall at around 14:50 on the eastern coast of Xuwen County in south China's Guangdong Province.

At landfall, it packed maximum winds of 42 meters per second and recorded a central pressure of 965 hPa.

Before its landfall, it brought powerful winds and surging waves to the eastern coast of the Leizhou Peninsula and Hainan Province in south China.

In response, meteorological authorities issued a red alert for typhoon and an orange alert for heavy rainfall, representing the top two levels in China's four-tier weather warning system.

As it approached, Matmo packed strong winds and high waves to coastal areas. Seawater flooded docks and coastal shops at a fishing port in Xuwen, prompting full-scale evacuation of local residents. Power and water supplies were cut off at the port.

To cope with Typhoon Matmo, authorities in Hainan's capital Haikou activated emergency measures, including halts to classes, work, transport, and outdoor activities and closure of scenic spots.

Several cross-sea bridges were closed as strong winds and torrential rain swept the area.

Rescue teams have been pre-positioned, and no major incidents have been reported so far.

Typhoon Matmo makes landfall in Guangdong

Typhoon Matmo makes landfall in Guangdong

Typhoon Matmo makes landfall in Guangdong

Typhoon Matmo makes landfall in Guangdong

Typhoon Matmo makes landfall in Guangdong

U.S. stocks ended mixed on Friday following the market's steepest declines in a month.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 309.74 points, or 0.65 percent, to 47,147.48, marking its second straight drop but still notching a weekly gain. The S and P 500 slipped 3.38 points, or 0.05 percent, to 6,734.11. The Nasdaq Composite Index rose 30.23 points, or 0.13 percent, to 22,900.59, snapping a three-day losing streak.

Seven of the 11 primary S and P 500 sectors finished lower, with materials and financials leading the laggards, down 1.18 percent and 0.97 percent, respectively. Energy and technology outperformed, advancing 1.37 percent and 0.74 percent, respectively.

The tech trade regained some footing after several days of pressure. AI leaders Nvidia and Oracle rebounded from their losses in the prior session, as did Palantir Technologies and Tesla, both of which had dropped more than 6 percent on Thursday.

Those sharp declines had briefly put the Nasdaq on course to break its seven-week winning streak, but Friday's recovery lifted the index back into positive territory for the week. Concerns about the sustainability of the AI rally have intensified, with the recent rout in cloud-computing giant Oracle heightening worries over stretched valuations, heavy reliance on debt financing, and soaring capital expenditure plans across the sector.

"AI is truly testing the limits of Wall Street spreadsheets right now," David Krakauer, vice president of portfolio management at Mercer Advisors, told CNBC, adding that investors pricing in "so much of this future growth that they really can't measure yet" just spurs an "environment of swings."

Adding to the market unease, traders continued to assess the Federal Reserve's upcoming policy decision. Market pricing now puts the odds of a quarter-point rate cut in December at below 50 percent, which is sharply lower than the roughly 95 percent probability seen a month ago, according to the CME FedWatch Tool.

U.S. stocks close mixed following steep declines