DAILY US MARKET REPORT
| Review of the 5 Nov session
Wall Street: Heavy tech sell-off – Nasdaq in correction, S&P 500 loses 4.4%
Market Analysis & Commentary
Wall Street posted its biggest one-day drop since April 2025, as concerns about artificial intelligence valuations and future data center investment triggered broad-based selling.
The market picture
US stocks ended Thursday's session with heavy losses, fully wiping out the previous day's gains.
The S&P 500 fell 4.4% to 7,353.73, the Nasdaq Composite lost 5.5% and the Dow Jones dropped 1,833 points.
The Nasdaq entered technical correction territory, having fallen more than 10% from its October closing high.
1. The two sessions compared
| Index | Wednesday 4 Nov | Thursday 5 Nov |
|---|---|---|
| S&P 500 | +1.6% | −4.4% |
| Nasdaq Composite | +1.4% | −5.5% |
| Dow Jones | +3.0% | −3.4% |
| Russell 2000 | +1.58% | −4.6% |
| Semiconductors (SOX) | −3.1% | −12.3% |
| VIX | −19.4% | +60.8% |
Green: favourable change. Red: unfavourable change. For the VIX, a rise signals higher expected volatility. Source of changes: Briefing.com, 4–5 Nov 2026.
The reversal was especially sharp: the indices finished the session near their lows of the day, and all 11 S&P 500 sectors closed lower.
2. Artificial intelligence: From growth to doubts about valuations
The heaviest pressure was in technology, which fell 7.3%.
The PHLX Semiconductor Index dropped 12.3%, as investors reassess whether the heavy capital spending required to build out artificial intelligence is sustainable.
According to the market reading reported by Briefing.com, the US midterm elections and the Democrats' win added to concerns about possible restrictions on building new data centers.
Stocks in focus
| Stock | Close | Change |
|---|---|---|
| NVIDIA (NVDA) | $181.60 | −9.26% |
| AMD (AMD) | $404.40 | −17.26% |
| Arm Holdings (ARM) | $166.72 | −13.08% |
| Qualcomm (QCOM) | $156.75 | −9.49% |
| CoreWeave (CRWV) | $43.66 | −9.83% |
| Tesla (TSLA) | $343.69 | −10.77% |
| Palantir (PLTR) | $154.99 | −9.73% |
| AppLovin (APP) | $356.10 | +31.04% |
Source: Briefing.com, 5 Nov 2026 session.
NVIDIA came under heavy pressure, while AMD lost more than 17%.
By contrast, AppLovin was a notable exception, rising 31% after reporting strong results and a new share buyback programme.
3. The decline spreads across the whole market
The sell-off was not limited to AI companies.
The equal-weighted S&P 500 lost 2.8%, considerably less than the main index, which highlights the outsized impact of the largest companies.
Small-cap stocks also came under heavy pressure.
At the other end, defensive sectors held up relatively well, but did not avoid losses.
| Sector | Daily change |
|---|---|
| Information Technology | −7.3% |
| Industrials | −4.1% |
| Consumer Discretionary | −3.7% |
| Financials | −2.8% |
| Energy | −2.8% |
| Materials | −2.7% |
| Health Care | −2.5% |
| Consumer Staples | −0.7% |
| Utilities | −0.7% |
Source: Briefing.com, 5 Nov 2026.
4. VIX: Volatility comes back sharply
The VIX volatility index jumped 60.8%, from 16.78 to 26.69, according to Briefing.com data.
The rise reflects a sharp increase in demand for protection against further declines.
This raises the likelihood of large intraday swings and makes short-term rebounds less reliable.
5. Bonds, oil and economic data
Despite the steep drop in stocks, the macroeconomic data remained relatively resilient.
Labour productivity rose 3.6% in the third quarter, beating estimates of 3.1%.
Unit labour costs fell 0.7%, against an expected rise of 1.4%.
Initial jobless claims fell to 189,000, indicating that layoffs remain limited.
In the bond market, demand for safer assets pushed yields lower.
| Market / Index | Price | Change |
|---|---|---|
| WTI Crude Oil | $90.55 | +2.6% |
| US Treasury 2Y | 4.49% | ▼ 10 bp |
| US Treasury 10Y | 4.84% | ▼ 5 bp |
Source: Briefing.com, data for 4–5 Nov 2026.
Oil's rebound followed Wednesday's steep drop, without fully recovering the earlier losses.
6. Technical picture: The key levels
The S&P 500 closed at 7,353.73, well below its 50-day moving average, which stood at around 7,693 according to the previous report.
This gap reflects a significant deterioration in the short-term technical picture.
For the next session, the market should be judged on:
- Whether the S&P 500 can hold above its recent low.
- How the Nasdaq and semiconductors behave.
- The path of the VIX and whether it eases.
- How broad participation is in any rebound.
A technical rebound after such a steep drop is likely, but on its own it does not confirm a reversal of the downtrend.
7. Market Outlook — Friday 6 November
The short-term picture remains under pressure.
Base case — Higher volatility: The market may swing sharply in both directions as investors reassess the valuations and prospects of AI companies.
Negative case — Selling continues: A further drop in semiconductors and a failure to reclaim key technical levels would increase the likelihood of further losses.
Positive case — Technical rebound: Stabilisation in the large tech companies and an easing VIX could set up strong short covering.
The US employment report for October is also especially important, as it could affect expectations for Federal Reserve monetary policy.
8. Conclusion — Market assessment and commentary
The 5 November session marked a substantial deterioration in investor sentiment.
The market no longer faces only the risk of excessive valuations in selected artificial intelligence companies. Uncertainty has begun to affect the stock indices as a whole.
At the same time, the resilience of the US economy is creating a notable gap between economic fundamentals and market behaviour.
The key question for the coming sessions is whether the market will stabilise after the sharp repricing of valuations, or whether the selling in AI will turn into a broader and more prolonged correction.