On Thursday, the stock market experienced a sharp decline, with the Nasdaq Composite dropping over 5%, marking its worst single-day performance since April 2025. The S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average also faced significant losses, retreating more than 4% and 3%, respectively.
This downturn erased gains from a recent postelection rally and highlighted investor anxiety regarding the pace of artificial intelligence advancements. Notably, the 'Magnificent Seven' tech stocks collectively lost over $1 trillion in market capitalization, with Nvidia alone seeing a decline of more than $440 billion, falling over 9% and turning negative for the year.
The CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) surged, indicating increased market uncertainty. All sectors of the S&P 500 closed in the red, with information technology suffering the most, down 7.30%. The trading volume for the Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLK) exceeded three times its average, reflecting heightened trading activity amid the sell-off.
The overall market sentiment was bearish, with a significant number of stocks trading well below their 52-week highs, suggesting a broader market correction may be underway