US stocks logged their biggest weekly loss since April 2025 on concerns over the artificial intelligence trade after Democrats swept the US midterm elections.
Even though the Nasdaq 100 Index climbed 1.4%, and the S&P 500 Index rose 0.3% Friday the gains weren’t enough to claw back a brutal session a day earlier. The US benchmark ended the week 2.7% lower, the most since April 2025.
It was a rollercoaster week full of superlatives. Stocks surged Wednesday following the midterms on what was seen as a relief rally following the midterms. Tech megacaps also jumped.
But the advance was short-lived. On Thursday, tech stocks plunged sending the Nasdaq 100 to notch its biggest one-day rout since the Covid pandemic. The anxiety around the AI trade sank in as many voters indicated opposition to data centers and expectations mounted for a potential regulatory shift that could crimp the growth of chipmakers and data center suppliers.
“This week threw the AI trade in a blender,” said Dave Mazza, chief executive officer at Roundhill Financial Inc. “Net net, the AI buildout just got politically harder, but not impossible, and the market is still sorting out if this is a parallel to 1998 or 2000.”