US Stock Market Today: S&P Down 1%, Nasdaq Plunges 1.9% As Megacaps Tumble

Wall Street's main indices were trading in the red on Wednesday as investors shied away from a rally in tech stocks. Buyers are waiting to see if the recent drop in prices will be a good opportunity to buy or if it's a sign that the market will continue to fall.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 118.44 points, or 0.26%, to 44,803.83. The S&P 500 fell for a fourth straight day by 66.62 points, or 1.04%, to 6,344.84​, while the Nasdaq Composite dropped 404.32 points, or 1.9%, to 20,910.63 as of 8:25 p.m. IST.

All megacaps retreated, with Nvidia falling 3%. Palantir Technologies sank after more than doubling in 2025. Target led the losses, tumbling 8% after naming a new CEO, while Intel also saw a decline of nearly 8%.

Tesla shares fell 4%, Advanced Micro Devices tanked 3.8%, while Meta Platforms and Microsoft were also trading in the red.

Five of the 11 S&P 500 sectors declined, with information technology down nearly 4%, falling the most. Communication and consumer discretionary also declined on Wednesday.

Powell is set to speak later this week, amid expectations of a potential Fed rate cut in interest rates in the FoMC September meeting. Data also showed a cool down in the labour market, as well as deflating consumer inflation.

US President Donald Trump has also continued with constant Powell criticism, chiding the chair for being "too late" in trimming interest rates.

At market open, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 64.69 points, or 0.14%, to 44,986.96. The S&P 500 fell 10.33 points, or 0.16%, to 6,401.13​, while the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.46 points, or 0.46%, to 21,216.02.