The Nasdaq Composite gained 1.09% on November 6, 2026 and still ended the day in correction territory. At the close of 24,579.42 points, the index was down 10.94% from its value at the record high of 27,599.89 points set on October 6. The drawdown from the peak had reached 11.90% on November 5.

Technology stocks tied to artificial intelligence took the worst of the selling, as investors questioned how long the enormous investments in data centers would take to deliver adequate returns. The decline deepened on November 5 on fears that the results of the US midterm elections could bring tighter restrictions on building that infrastructure. Reuters also points to high financing costs and uncertainty over the outlook for technology companies.

Investors who bought near the October 6 record face a wait of unknown length. The Nasdaq regained its previous high in less than a year after the 2018 selloff and in less than four months after the 2020 crash; after the dot-com bubble burst, it took more than fifteen years. Each of those declines exceeded 20% from the peak, so the precedents show how some bear markets can unfold, without indicating how likely it is that the current correction will deepen.

The Nasdaq needs to recover more than 3,000 points to reach its record

The Nasdaq Composite, the broad index of the Nasdaq market as distinct from the Nasdaq-100, closed at 24,315 points on November 5. It rose 264.42 points the following day and remained 3,020.47 points below the October 6 high. Climbing back to that level from the November 6 close would take a gain of roughly 12.29%.

A loss of at least 10% from a peak is generally defined as a stock market correction, while a decline of 20% is described as a bear market. Measured from the October 6 record, that second threshold for the Nasdaq would sit at around 22,079.91 points.

The index’s closing levels and the historical comparisons with 2000, 2018 and 2020 come from the daily Nasdaq Composite series published by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis (FRED), which carries data supplied by Nasdaq Inc.

In 2018 the Nasdaq lost 23.64% before recovering

Anyone who bought after an initial 10% drop in the fall of 2018 watched the Nasdaq fall further. The index slid from its record closing high of 8,109.69 points on August 29 to 6,192.92 points on December 24, a total loss of 23.64%.

The Nasdaq did not climb back above its August 29 record until April 2019.

In 2020 the Nasdaq regained its high in less than four months

During the pandemic the Nasdaq Composite reached a record closing high of 9,817.18 points on February 19, 2020. By March 23, little more than a month later, the index had plunged to 6,860.67 points, a loss of 30.12%.

On June 8, 2020, less than three months after the March 23 low, the Nasdaq had already passed its previous high, closing at 9,924.75 points.

In 2000 the Nasdaq took more than fifteen years to regain its high

The Nasdaq Composite reached a record closing high of 5,048.62 points on March 10, 2000, during the dot-com bubble. A long slide followed, taking the index to 1,114.11 points on October 9, 2002, a total loss of 77.93%.

The Nasdaq did not rise back above its March 2000 record until April 2015, more than fifteen years later.

Another 10% decline would take the Nasdaq close to bear-market territory

A further hypothetical 10% drop from the November 6 close of 24,579.42 points would take the Nasdaq to roughly 22,121.48 points, a total loss of 19.85% from the October 6 record. The index would then sit just above the 20% threshold that conventionally marks a bear market.

Editor’s note

This article was originally published in Italian on money.it by Gerardo Marciano on November 13, 2026 as «Nasdaq sotto pressione per la crisi dell’AI. Cosa insegnano i crolli del 2000, 2018 e 2020». It has been translated and adapted for an international audience by the Money.it International desk.