US Stock Market Crash: Nasdaq 100 Drops 1000 Points Amid Tech Sell-Off Ahead of Micron Results

Wall Street's technology rout deepened on Tuesday, 23 June 2026, as a sharp sell-off in semiconductor and artificial intelligence-linked stocks pulled the Nasdaq 100 down by more than 1,000 points. The fall reflected growing anxiety that the powerful AI trade, which has driven global equity gains for months, may be vulnerable to stretched valuations and profit-taking.

The pressure was concentrated in chipmakers and memory-related stocks, while broader market damage was more limited. The Nasdaq 100 slipped over 3%, and the Nasdaq Composite declined 2.2%. The S&P 500 lost 1.4%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, which has lower exposure to high-growth technology names, recovered from early weakness and ended near the flat line.

US market crash led by chip and AI stocks

Micron Technology was among the biggest losers on Wall Street, falling 13% ahead of its quarterly earnings due after the closing bell on 23 June. Sandisk also declined by a similar margin. Other semiconductor names, including Qualcomm, Intel, AMD and Nvidia, dropped between 4% and 8%, underlining the breadth of selling across the chip sector.

The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index fell nearly 8%, with all 30 constituents closing lower. The move was significant because the index tracks several companies central to the AI hardware supply chain. The latest decline also extended the recent erosion in technology valuations, with tech shares losing more than $1 trillion in market capitalisation during the sell-off.

The selling was not evenly spread across the technology sector. Alphabet extended its previous session's losses but slipped only 0.8%. Microsoft gained 1.8%, while Amazon rose 0.6%. Meta ended slightly below the flat line. That divergence suggested investors were reducing exposure most aggressively in companies directly linked to chips, memory and AI infrastructure.

Asia sell-off triggered warning for Wall Street

The negative mood began earlier in Asia-Pacific markets, where South Korea's KOSPI fell 10% and triggered a trading halt. The sharp decline followed a local media report that SK Hynix was slowing the expansion of its AI memory chip production and shifting more attention towards cheaper commodity DRAM products.

The report hit sentiment because SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics have been two of the most visible beneficiaries of AI-related memory demand. Shares of both companies plunged 12.5% on Tuesday. The reaction quickly spread to US markets, where investors viewed the Korean sell-off as a possible signal that expectations for AI memory growth had become too aggressive.

The scale of the fall was striking because both Korean stocks had already posted extraordinary gains in 2026. SK Hynix remained up 277% for the year so far, while Samsung Electronics was still higher by more than 140%. Such large advances had left the stocks exposed to any development that questioned the strength or pace of AI-related demand.

"Any headline that can be read as 'AI-memory demand might be plateauing' gets sold hard right now," Amanda Lyons, head of research at Energy Group Capital, said. "The vulnerability is in the positioning and the valuation, not in the buildout."

Why Micron results matter now

Micron's earnings are now central to market sentiment because the company sits at the intersection of memory chips, data centres and AI infrastructure. Investors will watch its commentary on pricing, demand visibility, inventory levels and capital expenditure. Any cautious language could reinforce concerns raised by the Korean market sell-off.

At the same time, stronger guidance from Micron could help stabilise sentiment, especially if management signals that demand for high-bandwidth memory and data-centre products remains resilient. The company's outlook may matter more than past-quarter numbers because the market is trying to judge whether AI-related orders are still accelerating.

The latest decline also shows how concentrated the global equity rally has become. AI and semiconductor stocks have carried a large part of the gains in major indices. When investors question that leadership, benchmark indices with heavy technology exposure become more vulnerable than those with broader sector representation.

Monday's session had already shown early signs of weakness in the Nasdaq, which closed 1% lower. Alphabet was a key drag after losing 5% following the exit of two high-profile engineers from its AI division, who left to join OpenAI and Anthropic. That added to concerns around competition for talent in the artificial intelligence industry.

Some analysts view the correction as a healthy reset after a steep rally. Others argue the fall in Korean technology shares may have been amplified by heavy retail investor participation. However, the market reaction shows investors are now less willing to overlook valuation risk, even in companies tied to long-term AI spending.