Nasdaq Plunges 5% as Investors Retreat From AI Trade After Election -- WSJ

By Chelsey Dulaney and Vicky Ge Huang

Stocks are falling sharply in a broad-based selloff driven by investors recalculating some of the year's most popular AI trades.

"This is a true panic," said Jay Hatfield, CEO at Infrastructure Capital Advisors. "This is 100% about the chip stocks and the potential slowdown in the AI trade."

Faced with a potential regime shift in markets after the midterms, investors are now positioning for an easing in the data center build-out, undermining shares of chipmakers and data-center suppliers.

The rethink pushed the tech-heavy Nasdaq 5% lower, sending it into correction territory-generally defined as a 10% decline from a recent high.

Other stocks are also giving up yesterday's post-election gains. The Dow is down about 1,600 points. The S&P 500, down 4%, is on pace for its worst day since early April 2025, when markets freaked out about Trump's Liberation Day tariffs.

The stock selloff is fueling a flight-to-quality trade in Treasurys, with the yield on the 10-year note falling to its lowest level since Sept. 9.

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(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 05, 2026 14:55 ET (19:55 GMT)