Global stock sell-off: Dow and Nasdaq plunge, KOSPI triggers circuit breaker

what happened

According to Moody's, US stock markets fell sharply on Thursday, November 5, erasing all gains from the rally that followed the US midterm elections. Shares in traditional industries, data centres and companies tied to artificial intelligence were sold across the board. The Dow Jones lost more than 1,800 points, all 30 of its components closed lower, and the index ended more than 6% below its recent peak.

The Nasdaq Composite dropped 5.5% and entered a technical correction, while the S&P 500 fell 4.4% and is also more than 6% below its peak. For the Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq, it was the worst session since April 2025. All 11 sector indexes of the S&P 500 closed markedly lower.

The selling spread to Asia on Friday. South Korea's KOSPI fell more than 8% in early trade and dropped below 5,000 for the first time in nine months, prompting the Korea Exchange to suspend trading in stocks and derivatives for 20 minutes. Japan's Nikkei 225 lost more than 6%, and Taiwan's Taiex fell to 37,841.36, down over 16% in five sessions.

why it matters

The slump in technology and semiconductor shares is dragging markets worldwide lower. For investors, the key point is that the AI sector has become the main source of pressure, and corrections of this size tend to spread quickly from one exchange to another. India's Sensex, meanwhile, rose 2.6% on Thursday to 79,310.01, though the local open was expected to be weak given the muted GIFT Nifty.

market impact

US and Asian stocks: tech sell-off weighs on the broader market

• ▼US stocks (S&P 500, Nasdaq) pressure down — selling of technology and traditional shares across all sectors
• ▼KOSPI and Nikkei 225 pressure down — sharp drop in semiconductor and technology stocks following Wall Street

instruments

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