Sharp Decline in Technology Stocks: Investors Are Uneasy

US Stock Market Day: Technology Stocks in Decline

On Thursday, US stock markets experienced sharp declines led by technology stocks. This drop came as the long-standing government shutdown came to an end, coupled with concerns over the Federal Reserve's plans for interest rate cuts in December being questioned.

At market close, the technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite (%^IXIC) ended the day with a loss of 2.3%. The benchmark index S&P 500 (%^GSPC) fell by 1.6%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (%^DJI) declined by 797 points (approximately 1.76%), marking its second consecutive record closing decline.

US President Donald Trump signed a bill on Wednesday night that ended the 43-day government shutdown. However, White House officials indicated that the economic reports delayed due to the shutdown appear to be "permanently affected" and may never be published.

As uncertainty persists regarding October's inflation and labor data, Trump's advisor Kevin Hassett stated that providing data on unemployment rates is difficult.

This economic uncertainty complicates interest rate cut predictions for December and next year. In the markets, after hawkish comments made by Federal Reserve officials on Wednesday, there is a 50-50 chance of interest rate cuts being considered at next month's meeting.

Many investors steered clear of some stocks that have been among this year's biggest winners; for example, Nvidia (%NVDA) dropped 3.5%, while Tesla (%TSLA) saw a decline of over 6%, marking the sharpest losses among the "Fabulous Seven" technology stocks.

The stock price of Disney (%DIS) also plummeted by 7.5% after poor earnings reports prior to the company's market opening.

Overall, US stock markets declined under the technology-focused selling pressure experienced on Thursday. The Nasdaq Composite completed the day with a significant loss of 2.3%.

Cryptocurrencies also fell during the overall market sell-off, with Bitcoin (%BTC-USD) dropping below $99,000, the lowest level since May. Following sharp sell-offs in October, Bitcoin's prices have struggled to recover.

Among precious metals, gold gained value over the past five days, reaching its highest levels in three weeks, with a 62% increase during this period. Bitcoin has seen a 10% gain year-to-date.

As a result, markets continue to exhibit weak performance due to the uncertain economic outlook and pressure on interest rates. Investors, in particular, are shifting towards less hyped sectors while experiencing losses in technology stocks.