US stock exchanges: “AI bloodbath” on the stock market – S&P 500 collapses by four percent

Two days after the US election, numerous tech stocks collapsed. Potentially tougher AI regulation is causing a sell-off. But another factor is aggravating the price slide.

Traders on the New York Stock Exchange: Two days after the US midterm elections, all major US indices are deeply in the red. Photo: AFP

New York. Dusseldorf. For the US financial magazine “Barron's” it is an “AI bloodbath”, for the Kobeissi Letter platform it is “absolute madness”. Just two days after the midterm elections, prices in the USA are collapsing across the board.

The Nasdaq technology exchange index fell by more than five percent. Compared to the record high, the loss was more than ten percent.

The other major indices on Wall Street were also on the decline: The Dow Jones, which had gained 1,500 points the day before, gave up all of its gains during trading and was down 3.2 percent. The market-wide S&P 500 lost up to four percent.

The major US indices lost more within one day than at any time since Donald Trump announced global US tariffs in April 2025.

The US volatility index VIX, also known as the “fear barometer of the stock market”, rose by over 60 percent.

The trigger is seen as the surprisingly strong performance of the Democrats in the US congressional elections. There is concern in the market that the Democrats could significantly slow down the expansion of the infrastructure for artificial intelligence (AI). Resistance to data centers was a central election campaign issue, and thus a reason for the share price losses.

But it wasn't the only factor.