Wall Street falls on Nov. 5 as Nasdaq drops 5.5% and chip index sinks 12.2%
Key Facts
U.S. stocks fell sharply in the Nov. 5 session, with the Nasdaq down 5.5%, the S&P 500 losing about 4.4% and the Dow Jones falling 3.4%, according to Reuters. Losses came amid pressure on technology and chip stocks and concerns about investment in artificial intelligence infrastructure. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index fell 12.2%, its biggest one-day drop since April 2025, Reuters reported. The selloff also erased gains made by the U.S. stock market the previous day, its best performance in three months, according to the Associated Press. The VIX volatility index surged by the most during a session in more than 18 months, Reuters reported.
Reuters attributed the pressure to a drop in chip stocks after weak results from Qualcomm, along with concerns that Democratic control of the U.S. Congress could slow investment in artificial intelligence infrastructure. The decline spread to global stocks, with semiconductor shares falling sharply. The drop in the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index deepened losses in the technology sector during the session. Index moves showed the breadth of the decline among major U.S. stocks, with the Nasdaq posting the biggest fall among the three indexes cited. The moves were accompanied by a sharp jump in Wall Street’s fear gauge, according to Reuters.
It could not be verified that U.S. options trading reached a record in the Nov. 5 session, nor could traders’ motives or increased demand for put options and hedges linked to the decline be confirmed. Third-quarter performance provides context on market activity: Cboe said average daily options volume was 70.6 million contracts, down 4% from the record level set in the second quarter. In the second quarter, average daily volume was 72.8 million contracts, up more than 19% year over year, according to Cboe data. The quarterly comparison points to a lower average in the third quarter than in the previous quarter, not a new record for a November session. These quarterly figures alone do not establish trading volume on Nov. 5.
Same-day expiration options, known as 0DTE options, continued to see elevated activity in the third quarter. Their marketwide average trading volume was 24.2 million contracts a day, equivalent to about 36% of total options volume, according to Cboe. For same-day expiration index options, the average was 3.4 million contracts a day, or 56% of index options flow in the third quarter. Cboe said retail order flow recovered in September to record levels after slower activity in July and August. These data place options activity in a quarterly context and reflect retail order behavior, but they do not specify options trading volume in the Nov. 5 session or traders’ motives.
Options trading growth in the first half varied across contract categories. Through the end of the second quarter, index options volume rose 25% year over year, ETF options volume increased 27%, while single-stock options rose 6%, according to Cboe. 0DTE options volume also exceeded 20 million contracts a day in the second quarter, up 46.2% year to date through that quarter. In October, Cboe said average daily trading in same-day expiration S&P 500 options was 3.2 million contracts in the third quarter, while the record monthly average in September was 3.4 million. These indicators offer a picture of the expansion in short-term contracts and variation in activity across asset classes, without establishing a daily trading record in the November session.
On economic data, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics said in a report released on Nov. 6 that the unemployment rate was 4.1% in October, compared with 4.2% in September. The figure is separate from the stock selloff the previous day and does not establish a cause for options or stock moves on Nov. 5. Reuters’ explanations for the stock session focused on Qualcomm’s results and concerns about investment in artificial intelligence infrastructure, while market indicators showed steep stock losses and a surge in volatility. The picture therefore combines a labor report released the following day with a selloff that preceded it, without the source linking the two events. The available facts did not include a specific later date for options trading or a subsequent development from the session.