Why Is the US Stock Market Crashing? 3 Reasons Behind the $2 Trillion Wipeout

Roughly $2 trillion in U.S. market value disappeared in the first hour of trading Thursday, with chipmakers leading a selloff tied to fears that Democrats will slow AI data-center construction. The S&P 500 dropped 1.8% in the first 30 minutes, reversing Wednesday’s post-midterm gain, then fell more than 3%; the Nasdaq entered correction territory—at least 10% below its recent peak—and the Dow lost 1,000 points. Democrats won both congressional chambers on Tuesday and flipped governor races in Texas, Georgia and Ohio, where the governors-elect promised moratoriums, a temporary pause or full utility-cost requirements for data centers. Qualcomm’s handset chip revenue fell 26% to $5.14 billion, and its shares declined almost 12%.