Stocks slide on Wall Street as investors worry about data centre backlash following US midterms

Dawn reported that technology shares fell sharply on Wall Street on Thursday as investors assessed whether US midterm election winners might restrict new AI data centre projects. The Nasdaq Composite dropped more than five per cent during late-morning trading before recovering part of its losses, while the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index declined more than eight per cent.

Chipmakers led the retreat: Nvidia slid more than six per cent, AMD fell 12pc and Micron lost 11pc. Their processors and memory are used in AI data centres, whose expansion has supported the companies’ revenue growth. Oil prices also rebounded after Wednesday’s steep decline, while European indexes that had risen earlier finished lower.