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U.S. stocks reversed Wednesday’s post-election rally on Thursday, with heavy selling in technology and semiconductor shares. The Dow fell 2.2%, the S&P 500 dropped 3.3% and the Nasdaq lost 5%; the semiconductor index fell 11%. Oil prices rose amid uncertainty over prospects for a U.S.-Iran deal.
U.S. stocks plunged Thursday, reversing the previous session’s post-election rally as investors sold technology, AI and chip shares. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 2.2%, the S&P 500 lost 3.3% and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 5%, according to Yahoo Finance’s market update.
The decline gathered pace after a mixed start to trading. Yahoo Finance reported that the indexes had initially moved unevenly, with the Dow higher and the Nasdaq lower, before a sharp sell-off in technology shares pulled the broader market down. By the later update, the Dow had lost more than 1,200 points, while the Nasdaq’s 5% fall put it on track to close in correction territory. The source did not report a final closing level.
Semiconductor shares were among the hardest hit. The PHLX Semiconductor Index fell 11%, while Nvidia and Micron were among the chip companies swept into the sell-off. An earlier Yahoo Finance update reported AMD down more than 13%, Micron down more than 12% and Nvidia down more than 6% at that point in the session. Those earlier individual-stock figures are not necessarily closing moves.
The volatility gauge also jumped. Yahoo Finance reported that the CBOE Volatility Index rose more than 65% to as high as 27.45, which market strategist Shay Boloor of Futurum Equities described as its biggest one-day increase in more than two years. Oil moved higher as investors weighed whether President Donald Trump would pursue a deal with Iran to end the Middle East war. Brent crude traded around $97 a barrel and U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate around $90, according to the report.
A Sharp Reversal for Tech Stocks
The breadth and speed of the sell-off matter because the previous day’s gains had followed the Democrats’ sweeping victory in the midterm elections. Thursday’s reversal showed that election-related optimism had not settled investors’ views about the next Congress, economic policy or the outlook for companies tied to AI infrastructure. The Yahoo Finance report said investors were still sorting out which sectors might benefit or face pressure after the change in control on Capitol Hill.
The drop in semiconductor shares put particular focus on the market’s technology-heavy growth stocks. A steep decline in a major sector index can weigh on broader benchmarks, while the rise in the VIX signaled a sharp increase in expected market volatility. These moves describe trading conditions, not a settled explanation for why each investor sold or a prediction of what prices will do next.
Oil’s rise added another point of uncertainty. Prices were reported higher amid questions about a possible U.S.-Iran agreement and the ongoing Middle East conflict. The source also pointed to Friday’s employment report as a near-term economic indicator: a report from Challenger, Gray & Christmas said October layoff plans fell to their lowest level since 2023, as companies focused on retaining workers.
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Election Gains Give Way to Selling
Wednesday’s rally followed the Democrats’ victory in both chambers of Congress, according to Yahoo Finance. Bitcoin had risen above $80,000 that day before falling below $76,000 Thursday as the broader market weakened. The report described that move as a reversal alongside the stock sell-off, while also noting concern about crypto market fragility after a reported $6.3 billion hack of Binance the previous week.
Political implications were still being debated. Vice President JD Vance wrote on X that “The reason we lost [the midterm elections] is the war,” a comment Yahoo Finance linked to overnight optimism about the possibility of a push to resolve the conflict. The report also cited Stifel policy strategist Brian Gardner, who said the crypto industry’s Clarity Act was unlikely to advance before the end of the year. These are attributed assessments, not enacted policy or a confirmed legislative outcome.
Company-specific news offered a contrast to the broad decline. AppLovin shares rose in premarket trading after the company reported third-quarter revenue and earnings above analyst estimates and issued a stronger-than-expected fourth-quarter forecast, according to Yahoo Finance. That gain did not prevent major indexes from falling as technology and chip shares broadly came under pressure.
Drivers and Closing Levels Remain Unclear
The report documented a sharp sell-off and linked it to weakness in AI, technology and chip shares, but it did not establish a single cause for the reversal. Investors were also weighing the election outcome, policy implications and developments in the Middle East. The relative influence of each factor was not quantified.
The supplied update gives intraday figures and says the Nasdaq was on track to close in correction territory; it does not provide the final closing levels or confirm that the index finished in a correction. Individual stock moves cited at earlier timestamps may differ from final results. It is also unclear from this material whether Thursday’s decline continued in subsequent sessions.
Friday’s Jobs Data in Focus
Investors were looking ahead to Friday’s employment report, which could provide a further read on hiring and labor-market conditions after the October layoff-plans report. The source does not provide the employment report’s results or say how markets would respond.
Trading will also continue to reflect developments in technology and semiconductor shares, oil prices and the policy questions raised by the election. The Yahoo Finance report listed results due from companies including Duke Energy, Airbnb and Lumentum, though it did not provide those companies’ reported results in the supplied material. Further market updates and closing data would clarify whether Thursday’s losses held or were reversed.
Key Questions
How much did the major U.S. indexes fall?
Yahoo Finance reported that the Dow fell 2.2%, the S&P 500 dropped 3.3% and the Nasdaq Composite lost 5% on Thursday. The update did not include final closing levels.
What led the decline?
The report linked the sell-off to weakness in AI, technology and semiconductor shares, while also describing investor uncertainty about the election’s policy implications. It did not identify one confirmed cause for the market-wide reversal.
Did the Nasdaq close in correction territory?
The report said the Nasdaq’s 5% decline put it on track to close in a correction. The supplied material does not confirm its final closing level or whether it finished in that range.
Why did oil prices rise?
Yahoo Finance said oil rose amid uncertainty about whether President Trump would pursue a deal with Iran to end the Middle East war. Brent crude was around $97 a barrel and WTI around $90 in the reported update.
Source: finance.yahoo.com
