U.S. Stocks Plunge, Nasdaq Down 4.18% on June 5 as Jobs Data Fuels Rate Hike Concerns

U.S. stocks plunged on June 5 after stronger-than-expected May employment data reignited Federal Reserve rate hike concerns. The Nasdaq fell 4.18% (1,121.53 points) to 25,709.43, while the S&P 500 dropped 2.64% and the Dow fell 1.35%, marking the largest single-day declines in months. Semiconductor stocks led losses, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index down 4.74% as Nvidia dropped over 6%, TSMC fell 6.66%, and Micron slid over 13%.

The selloff was triggered after the U.S. Department of Labor reported 172,000 new nonfarm jobs in May, far exceeding the expected 85,000. CME FedWatch data showed market probability of a Fed rate hike by year-end surged from 48% to over 60%, pushing the 10-year Treasury yield above 4.5%. Precious metals crashed on rate hike expectations: spot gold fell 3.25% to $4,328.92/oz and spot silver dropped 8.09% to $67.885/oz.