Nasdaq 100 Slides as Semiconductor Selloff Drags Tech Lower

The Nasdaq 100 came under pressure as semiconductor names led a broad tech retreat, with the index's heavy weighting toward chipmakers amplifying the downside. Nvidia's slide has become a focal point, with traders split on whether the move reflects pre-earnings caution or a genuine unwind of the broader AI trade that has powered index gains for over a year.

Compounding the tech-led weakness, fresh geopolitical friction from Iran-related sanctions and simmering U.S.-Canada tariff tensions added a risk-off layer to the session. For an index as concentrated in a handful of mega-cap growth and semiconductor names as the Nasdaq 100, any wobble in sentiment toward that cohort tends to translate directly into outsized index moves.

Traders will be watching whether the semiconductor drag proves temporary or spreads further into software and platform names that make up the rest of the index's top holdings.