Top Stories This Morning: Nasdaq Lost $2.5 Trillion, Asian Stocks Plummeted

On November 5, the U.S. Nasdaq Composite Index fell 5.5%, marking its largest one-day decline since April 2025. The Nasdaq 100 lost 6.4%, resulting in a $2.5 trillion drop in the market capitalization of its constituent companies. The sell-off then spread to Asia: Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell nearly 6%, entering bear market territory, while South Korea’s Kospi lost as much as 8.8%, leading to a temporary suspension of trading. Read about these and other topics in our roundup of key events as of the morning of November 6.

The sell-off in global stock markets intensified in Asia amid concerns that, following the Democrats’ victory in the U.S. election, authorities will tighten regulations on the artificial intelligence industry, according to Bloomberg. Japan’s Nikkei 225 index fell 5.8%, marking its biggest drop since April 2025. South Korea’s Kospi, in which memory chip makers Samsung and SK Hynix hold significant weight, lost as much as 8.8%, leading to a temporary trading halt. Taiwan’s Taiex fell 4.5%, entering bear market territory. TSMC, the world’s largest contract semiconductor manufacturer and a constituent of the index, initially dropped 10% but then halved its losses. Stock markets in China, Hong Kong, and Singapore were not as severely affected.

Investors are concerned about restrictions on data center construction: about 40% of planned capacity in the U.S. is located in states where the newly elected governors have promised to halt or suspend such projects. According to UBS estimates, 30% of the new capacity slated for 2028 could be at risk of being put on hold. Investors are also concerned about the enormous costs of AI development and companies’ ability to recoup their investments.

The U.S. Nasdaq Composite Index fell 5.5% on Thursday, marking its largest one-day decline since April 2025, according to Reuters. The index was nearly 12% below its record high set on October 6, entering correction territory. The Nasdaq 100 lost 6.4%, resulting in a $2.5 trillion decline in the market capitalization of its constituent companies.

Chipmakers and AI infrastructure providers were hit the hardest: Nvidia’s stock fell 9%, AMD’s 17%, CoreWeave’s 10%, and Nebius’s 15%.

SpaceX and Tesla shares fell by about 9% and 11%, respectively, on Thursday amid investor concerns that, following the Democrats’ victory, Elon Musk’s companies would face tighter regulation and congressional investigations, according to CNBC. By the close of trading, the companies’ combined market capitalization had fallen by approximately $456 billion compared to Tuesday’s level. According to Forbes USA, Musk’s net worth fell below $800 billion, although he remains the richest person in the world.

In addition to controlling both chambers of Congress, the Democrats won gubernatorial races in several key states, including Texas, where Tesla and SpaceX are headquartered. Analysts at Deutsche Bank warned that new restrictions on data center construction could delay SpaceX’s AI projects and increase the company’s costs. Furthermore, increased regulatory oversight could complicate a potential merger between SpaceX and Tesla.

Potential investors in Anthropic doubt that the artificial intelligence developer will be able to hold a roadshow next week and go public in November, Reuters reports, citing four sources. Investors are pushing for a more attractive valuation of the company, considering the discussed $1.5 trillion to be too high. Anthropic may need to offer shares at a significant discount amid massive losses and obligations to fund AI infrastructure, the agency notes.

Investors are also awaiting Anthropic's October revenue figures to assess the company's growth rate following a recent slowdown.

This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor