Finance1 min read

Nasdaq plummets 4% into correction territory

By · Published by Everything Blog

In short

Major U.S. indexes wiped out their post-election gains as artificial intelligence, chip, and data-center equities faced intense downward pressure. Semiconductor leaders Nvidia and Broadcom led the declines, while neocloud infrastructure providers suffered even steeper double-digit losses. The widespread market retreat also spilled over into traditional sectors, dragging down heavyweight names like Caterpillar, JPMorgan, and Boeing.

Key points

  • Political developments and calls for regulatory moratoriums triggered an aggressive retre…: Political developments and calls for regulatory moratoriums triggered an aggressive retreat from technology infrastructure investments.
  • The severe technology rout erased earlier post-election market gains across all major dom…: The severe technology rout erased earlier post-election market gains across all major domestic equity averages.
  • Severe losses spread rapidly into industrial, retail, and financial leaders, underscoring…: Severe losses spread rapidly into industrial, retail, and financial leaders, underscoring broader cross-sector market vulnerability.

Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1

Stocks plummeted on Thursday, erasing the sharp gains from the rally seen in the wake of the U.S. midterm elections, as investors accelerated their move away from technology stocks on fears of a data-center buildout slowdown.

The Nasdaq Composite declined 5.2% and dipped into correction territory, trading more than 10% below a record set last month. The S&P 500 was down 3.9%, heading for its worst day since April 2025. The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 1,605 points, or 3%. The Dow erased all of its advance from Wednesday's massive postelection rally. The small-cap Russell 2000 index decreased 4.6% and also traded in correction territory.

Stocks related to the artificial intelligence trade, particularly those linked to the chips industry and data centers, slid for a second day. Investors fear that a Democratic sweep of both chambers of Congress as well as victories in key gubernatorial races could decelerate the data center buildout.

For instance, Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont — who caucuses with Democrats — has called for a national data center moratorium. In a post on X Wednesday evening,…

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