US Stocks End October with a Thud

The final trading day of October delivered a sharp blow to US equities, as all three major indices closed significantly lower. The broad sell-off cast a pall over the month's end, with investors moving to lock in profits or reduce exposure amid growing uncertainty.

Major Indices Deep in the Red

At the closing bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 1.09%. The S&P 500 suffered a steeper loss of 1.82%. The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite bore the brunt of the selling pressure, tumbling 2.86% in a clear sign of distress within the tech sector.

Chip Stocks Hammered, Intel Posts Historic Drop

The epicenter of the day's market turmoil was the semiconductor sector. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index, a key industry benchmark, plunged 7.2%, marking its worst single-day performance since June and sending shockwaves through the chip-making ecosystem.

Heavy Losses Across the Board

Industry bellwether Intel was devastated, its shares crashing 28.58% in a historic rout. This staggering decline, the company's largest in over four decades, reflected intense market disappointment with its recent outlook and financials.

  • SanDisk dropped over 13%.
  • Qualcomm and AMD fell more than 11% and 10%, respectively.
  • ARM declined over 9%.
  • Storage firms Seagate Technology and Western Digital, along with chip equipment maker Applied Materials, all slid more than 7%.
  • Lithography leader ASML and Lam Research were down over 6%.
  • Foundry giant TSMC and chip designer Broadcom also fell, losing more than 5% each.

The sweeping sell-off across the semiconductor supply chain underscored deep-seated concerns about industry cycles, inventory levels, and future demand.

Big Tech Joins the Retreat

The market's pain extended beyond chips to the megacap technology leaders, which have driven gains for years. While their declines were more modest, the unanimous downturn further soured market sentiment.

  • Electric vehicle pioneer Tesla dipped 0.86%.
  • Apple shares retreated 1.11%.
  • Google and Amazon declined 1.37% and 1.42%, respectively.
  • Software behemoth Microsoft fell 1.47%.
  • Social media company Meta Platforms dropped 1.49%.
  • AI chip leader NVIDIA saw a more pronounced loss of 4.08%.

The synchronized weakness among these market heavyweights weighed heavily on the major indices and raised fresh questions about the durability of tech profits in a higher interest rate environment.