US stocks fell suddenly on Thursday as the crosscurrents of a power shift in Washington, the war in Iran, earnings, and labor market data overlapped.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) tumbled 1%, giving back some gains after the blue-chip index roared back on Wednesday following the US midterm election results. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 (^GSPC) fell 2.1%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) dropped 3.8% as semiconductor stocks declined.
The PHLX Semiconductor index (^SOX) sank over 9% as Nvidia (NVDA) fell 7%, Micron (MU) dived 12%, and chip stocks sold off across the board.
Investors continued to process the Democrats’ sweeping victory on Tuesday and its implications for markets and the economy. As the stock market sorts out the perceived winners and losers of a regime change on Capitol Hill, one thing is clear: The market breathed a sigh of relief at the removal of overhanging election uncertainty.
Oil prices rose amid uncertainty that President Trump would pursue a deal with Iran to end the war in the Middle East. Optimism grew overnight after Vice President JD Vance said, “The reason we lost [the midterm elections] is the war,” in a post on X suggesting the party should push for a resolution to the conflict. Brent crude oil (BZ=F) prices traded around $97 per barrel, while US benchmark WTI crude (CL=F) stood at $90 per barrel.
52,485.40 -870.72 (-1.63%)
As of 10:41:21 AM EST. Market Open.
^DJI ^GSPC ^IXIC
A report from Challenger, Gray & Christmas showed layoff plans in October fell to the lowest level since 2023 as companies turned their attention to retaining existing employees, setting the scene for Friday’s key employment report.
On the earnings calendar, Duke Energy (DUK), Airbnb (ABNB), and Lumentum (LITE), among others, report results.
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Nasdaq plunges 4% amid chip stock wipeout
Stocks began diving on Thursday morning as chip stocks sold off, erasing roughly $2 trillion in market cap and reversing the gains made in yesterday’s post-election rally.
The Nasdaq fell roughly 4%, the S&P 500 dropped 2.3%, and the Dow shed over 700 points, or 1.4%.
Nvidia (NVDA), Micron (MU), and AMD (AMD) fell over 6%, 12%, and 13%, respectively.
Here’s a look at the wipeout hitting tech, AI, and chip stocks:
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Corporate earnings are growing like it’s 1984 — and that’s bad news for anyone waiting on lower rates
If you’re waiting for lower rates to buy a house, refinance, or pay down a credit card, corporate America may have bad news for you. Profits are growing so fast that one top economist says the economy could run at a pace last seen in 1984.
S&P 500 (^GSPC) earnings are up nearly 40% from a year ago, Apollo chief economist Torsten Sløk wrote in a Nov. 3 note. The economy is growing much more slowly, up about 6% in nominal terms, before adjusting for inflation. Strip out inflation and real GDP grew at a 3.4% annual rate in the third quarter. (Disclosure: Yahoo is a portfolio company of funds managed by affiliates of Apollo Global Management.)
By his math, “the current pace of earnings growth is consistent with nominal GDP growth of 10%,” Sløk wrote.
That would mean adding more than $3 trillion to a $33 trillion economy in a year. Outside the pandemic rebound of 2021-2022, the US hasn’t grown that fast since 1984, according to Yahoo Finance calculations from Commerce Department data.
US nominal GDP, percent change from a year earlier, quarterly, 1980 through Q3 2026 · US Bureau of Economic Analysis, Apollo, Yahoo Finance -
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