Nasdaq Stock Market Experiences Severe Sell-Off

A severe sell-off hit the Nasdaq stock market, with losses exceeding 700 points as a result of disappointing earnings from major tech companies. Intel's shares plummeted by nearly 29% in a single day, marking its largest drop since 1974.

The stock performance of Alphabet, Google's parent company, continued to decline after a 12% slide on Thursday that wiped out approximately $500 billion in market value. Market analyst Adam Crisafulli observed in a research note that this has been one of the most underwhelming tech earnings seasons in recent history for several prominent companies.

The negative sentiment surrounding tech stocks spread to other major indices, as investors became increasingly concerned about the potential return on massive investments in AI technologies, which had previously been expected to generate significant gains.

The selling pressure on mega-cap stocks has intensified over the past two weeks due to growing concerns about the path to profitability. Elevated spending on artificial intelligence (AI) and rising financing costs have fueled these worries, according to Adam Turnquist, chief cross-asset strategist for LPL Financial.

Another factor contributing to the decline of tech stocks is investor anxiety about the Federal Reserve's monetary policy stance. Despite the central bank's decision to keep its benchmark rate unchanged this week, many economists believe it will raise interest rates as early as December and continue into 2027.

This potential increase in borrowing costs would make it more expensive for companies to build data centers needed to power AI services, ultimately cutting into corporate profits.

The surge in tech stocks that propelled the stock market to record highs is now facing a significant threat. This potential downturn has been fueled by investors' high expectations for artificial intelligence (AI) growth.

The recent hacking incident at Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, has also had a ripple effect on the market, causing a sharp decline in cryptocurrency prices.