Overview
- On Thursday, U.S. indexes plunged in a one‑day rout with the S&P down about 4.4%, the Nasdaq off roughly 5.5% and the Dow falling about 1,833 points, erasing trillions in market value.
- The selloff was driven by investor fears that Democratic midterm victories and dozens of local ballot measures restricting data centers will slow or pause construction and tighten oversight of AI infrastructure.
- Ballotpedia reported voters limited or blocked data‑center projects in most contests, with coverage noting restrictions on 35 of 41 measures, creating concrete, local permitting obstacles for many projects.
- A UBS analysis cited by multiple outlets estimated roughly 30% of U.S. data‑center capacity planned for 2028 could face disruption, a prospect that hit chipmakers, cloud providers and smaller ‘neocloud’ builders hardest.
- Stocks staged a partial recovery the next day led by semiconductor and large AI names, but markets remain volatile and investors are watching permit developments, corporate capex guidance, and financing stress for smaller builders.