Why semiconductor stocks tumbled today?

Trade war tensions battered the US stock market today. Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq indexes were down 1.33%, 1.37% and 2.09%, respectively. Especially, the semiconductor sector was hammered badly. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index or PHLX Semiconductor Index (SOX) was down 3% at the end of today’s trading session. It’s worth noting that this index was up 23% in the last one year and 6% year-to-date.

The famous chipmaker stocks like Nvidia (NVDA), Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), Micron Technology (MU) were all bleeding today. From the early hours of trading, the semiconductor stocks were trading in the negative territory after the reports said that President Donald Trump plans to curb the foreign investments in the US tech companies. Things got worse when the US Treasury Secretary tweeted that this is not only specific to China, “but to all countries that are trying to steal our technology”.

Related: You can’t afford to miss out on these red-hot chip stocks

Micron topped the laggards today with 7% drop in the stock price, followed by Nvidia -5%, and AMD -4.4%. Intel (INTC), which is already suffering from its CEO’s exit, decreased 3.4%. Also, other chip stocks, namely Qualcomm (QCOM), Applied Materials (AMAT), SunPower (SPWR), Marvel Technology (MRVL) and ON Semiconductor (ON) were down 2.5%, 2.6%, 5.4%, 5.3% and 3.8%, respectively.

Related: Intel CEO Brian Krzanich resigns

Two weeks ago, AlphaStreet listed out few red-hot chip stocks for investors to look for, but also cautioned them that one of the headwinds that could hit these stocks is the trade war tensions between the US and China. As the week unfolds, we will get more clarity on the US government’s decision on this issue. Until then, it’s better to wait and watch the game.

Related: Micron Technology hits 18-year high