
NEW YORK — The Nasdaq Composite fell 4.2 percent on Friday, its worst single-day decline of 2026, as technology and semiconductor stocks led a broad market retreat that erased earlier June gains and extended a losing streak for major U.S. indexes.
The sell-off pushed the Nasdaq down for a fifth consecutive day and brought the benchmark to its lowest close since mid-May. The S&P 500 slipped 3.47 points to 7,354.02, a modest decline that still left the index firmly in the red for the week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 44.51 points to 51,876.11.
Technology names accounted for the bulk of the losses. Chip makers led the declines after a string of upbeat earnings reports failed to allay investor concerns about narrowing profit margins and rising capital expenditures. Micron Technology swung from a gain of 4.2 percent to a loss of 7.6 percent during the session.
Analysts pointed to a convergence of worries: the Federal Reserve's hawkish pivot, elevated valuation levels in large-cap tech, and fears that the sector's headcount and data-center spending could outstrip revenue growth in coming quarters. The CBOE Volatility Index, a measure of market anxiety, climbed to its highest reading since April.
Despite the sharp downturn, some strategists cautioned against reading the sell-off as a signal of an imminent recession. Corporate earnings remain solid, consumer spending is holding up, and the labor market continues to add jobs, albeit at a slower pace than in 2025.
But the rout underscored how sensitive technology-heavy portfolios have become to any shift in monetary expectations. With the Fed now signaling that rates could stay higher for longer, investors are trimming exposure to the high-multiple stocks that drove much of the market's 2026 gains.
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