The S&P 500 index endured its sharpest weekly decline in over a year and a half — a drop that hasn't been seen since the banking crisis in March 2023.
A cooler labor market report prompted investors to reduce their risk exposure after three consecutive weeks of gains.
On Friday, Wall Street experienced a strong “risk-off” session, with the S&P 500, tracked by the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY), closing 1.7% lower. This extended the weekly loss to 4.1%.
Tech stocks were hit even harder. The Invesco QQQ Trust, Series 1 (NASDAQ:QQQ), which follows the performance of major tech stocks, plunged 2.6% on Friday. This resulted in a 5.8% weekly loss, the steepest since October 2022.
Semiconductors bore the brunt of the selling. The iShares Semiconductor ETF (NYSE:SOXX), a barometer for the semiconductor industry, sank 4.3% on Friday ...
