US Chip Stocks Plunge After Democrats Win Congress

Shares of chipmakers and data center operators plunged after Democrats won control of both US Congress chambers, sparking fears of stricter AI infrastructure regulation and wiping out about $1.8 trillion in market value. The Nasdaq 100 fell 4.5% on November 5, while the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index dropped 8.4% to a six-month low. Nvidia, Broadcom, CoreWeave, and Nebius saw sharp declines, with investors also questioning the profitability of massive AI spending. Analysts at UBS estimate up to 30% of planned US data center capacity growth by 2028 could be threatened by potential construction halts. Qualcomm lost 12% after weak forecasts, while capital shifted to European and other regional markets.