/images/ppid_59c68470-image-179392252522978742.webp)
/images/ppid_59c68470-image-179368754904217641.webp)
/images/ppid_59c68470-image-179378252586713064.webp)
What is the story about?
Benchmark indices on Wall Street sold off and then some more, giving up all of the post mid-term election rally on Thursday, November 5, as investors dumped almost everything they could lay there hands on. From old economy, to data centers and AI-linked stocks, none were spared in what turned out to be the worst day for the Dow Jones, S&P 500, and the Nasdaq Composite since April 2025.
Fears about a clampdown on the AI expansion and data center buildout after democrats take charge of the House and Senate from January next year led to the steep sell-off across the board.
Here are 15 things you should know about Thursday's steep sell-off on Wall Street:
The Dow Jones fell over 1,800 points on Thursday, giving up the entire 1,500 point rally it had just the day prior after the midterm election results. All 30 stocks of the index ended with losses. The index is now down over 6% from its peak.
The Nasdaq Composite fell 5.5% on Thursday and has now entered a "technical correction", meaning a fall of more than 10% from the peak.
The S&P 500 also fell 4.4% on Thursday and is down over 6% from the peak, similar to the Dow Jones. All 11 sectors on the S&P 500 ended with steep cuts on Thursday.
The Nasdaq 100 index, which comprises mostly of chip and semiconductor-linked stocks, fell over 6%, to mark its worst single-day fall since March 2020, which was the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Thursday's sell-off resulted in the Nasdaq 100 wiping out $2.3 trillion in market capitalization, the worst single-day value erosion on record for the index . The Nasdaq 100 index is now down 16% from its peak and is nearing "bear market" territory, which indicates a 20% fall from the top.
It was not just the benchmark indices that saw steep loses, the smallcap Russell 2000 index also entered a "technical correction" after dropping over 4.5% on Thursday.
The widely tracked Philadelphia Semiconductor index fell 12% on Thursday, the worst single-day fall for the index since March 2020. The index is now down 38% from its June 22, 2026 peak, going deep into bear market territory.
Here's a look at how the Semiconductor, chip and AI-linked stocks fared on Thursday:
Elon Musk, one of the biggest backers of the Republican party continued to face steep losses as shares of his listed entities, Tesla and SpaceX fell up to 9% on Thursday, wiping out over $420 billion in cumulative market capitalization.
The so-called Magnificent Seven Stocks were not spared the sell-off horror either. The seven stocks cumulatively lost over $1 trillion in market capitalization, with Nvidia leading the way with a 9% fall.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang is no longer among the 10 most richest people in the world after the sell-off seen in shares of his company. The stock fell 9% on Thursday, leading to a loss of $15.1 billion in Huang's net worth. As a result of the fall, shares of Nvidia have also turned negative on a year-to-date basis.
After the recent sell-off, 174 or 34.6% of the constituents on the S&P 500 are trading in "bear market territory", meaning a drop of more than 20% from their 52-week high levels.
The situation for the Nasdaq 100 constituents is worse, with 59 out of the 101 constituents (58.4%) trading in bear market territory after the recent sell-off.
If we narrow the quantum of losses down, 310 or 61.6% stocks on the S&P 500 are at least in a "technical correction", meaning a fall of 10% or more from their recent peaks. For the Nasdaq 100, that number increases to 72 out of 101 stocks.
The steep sell-off on Wall Street meant that investors went flocking towards haven assets. The 10-year bond yield, which at one point, had surged to as high as 5.4%, has now cooled off by almost 60 basis points to now trade at 4.84%. The US Dollar index remains steady above 101.5.
The US futures this morning are pointing towards an extension of the sell-off on Friday as well. The Dow futures and the Nasdaq futures are down between 250 to 300 points, while the S&P 500 futures are down 45-50 points. The major trigger to watch this evening will be the non-farm payrolls report, which will be released at 7 PM IST.
Fears about a clampdown on the AI expansion and data center buildout after democrats take charge of the House and Senate from January next year led to the steep sell-off across the board.
Here are 15 things you should know about Thursday's steep sell-off on Wall Street:
The Dow Jones fell over 1,800 points on Thursday, giving up the entire 1,500 point rally it had just the day prior after the midterm election results. All 30 stocks of the index ended with losses. The index is now down over 6% from its peak.
The Nasdaq Composite fell 5.5% on Thursday and has now entered a "technical correction", meaning a fall of more than 10% from the peak.
The S&P 500 also fell 4.4% on Thursday and is down over 6% from the peak, similar to the Dow Jones. All 11 sectors on the S&P 500 ended with steep cuts on Thursday.
The Nasdaq 100 index, which comprises mostly of chip and semiconductor-linked stocks, fell over 6%, to mark its worst single-day fall since March 2020, which was the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Thursday's sell-off resulted in the Nasdaq 100 wiping out $2.3 trillion in market capitalization, the worst single-day value erosion on record for the index . The Nasdaq 100 index is now down 16% from its peak and is nearing "bear market" territory, which indicates a 20% fall from the top.
It was not just the benchmark indices that saw steep loses, the smallcap Russell 2000 index also entered a "technical correction" after dropping over 4.5% on Thursday.
The widely tracked Philadelphia Semiconductor index fell 12% on Thursday, the worst single-day fall for the index since March 2020. The index is now down 38% from its June 22, 2026 peak, going deep into bear market territory.
Here's a look at how the Semiconductor, chip and AI-linked stocks fared on Thursday:
| Stock | Thursday's Fall (%) |
|---|---|
| Nvidia | -9.3 |
| AMD | -17 |
| Micron | -17 |
| Intel | -10 |
| Broadcom | -10 |
| Qualcomm | -9.5 |
| Sandisk | -22 |
| Western Digital | -17 |
| Seagate | -16 |
| CoreWeave | -10 |
| Nebius Group | -15 |
Elon Musk, one of the biggest backers of the Republican party continued to face steep losses as shares of his listed entities, Tesla and SpaceX fell up to 9% on Thursday, wiping out over $420 billion in cumulative market capitalization.
The so-called Magnificent Seven Stocks were not spared the sell-off horror either. The seven stocks cumulatively lost over $1 trillion in market capitalization, with Nvidia leading the way with a 9% fall.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang is no longer among the 10 most richest people in the world after the sell-off seen in shares of his company. The stock fell 9% on Thursday, leading to a loss of $15.1 billion in Huang's net worth. As a result of the fall, shares of Nvidia have also turned negative on a year-to-date basis.
After the recent sell-off, 174 or 34.6% of the constituents on the S&P 500 are trading in "bear market territory", meaning a drop of more than 20% from their 52-week high levels.
The situation for the Nasdaq 100 constituents is worse, with 59 out of the 101 constituents (58.4%) trading in bear market territory after the recent sell-off.
If we narrow the quantum of losses down, 310 or 61.6% stocks on the S&P 500 are at least in a "technical correction", meaning a fall of 10% or more from their recent peaks. For the Nasdaq 100, that number increases to 72 out of 101 stocks.
The steep sell-off on Wall Street meant that investors went flocking towards haven assets. The 10-year bond yield, which at one point, had surged to as high as 5.4%, has now cooled off by almost 60 basis points to now trade at 4.84%. The US Dollar index remains steady above 101.5.
The US futures this morning are pointing towards an extension of the sell-off on Friday as well. The Dow futures and the Nasdaq futures are down between 250 to 300 points, while the S&P 500 futures are down 45-50 points. The major trigger to watch this evening will be the non-farm payrolls report, which will be released at 7 PM IST.
/images/ppid_59c68470-image-179389752960840039.webp)
/images/ppid_59c68470-image-179383753334491398.webp)
/images/ppid_59c68470-image-179380502898233492.webp)
/images/ppid_59c68470-image-179375003280547843.webp)