Markets Plunge as Tech Stocks Are Sold Off Again

The Nasdaq saw its biggest drop since 2011 on Thursday as investors sold off typically well-performing tech and biotech stocks for the second time in a week.

Tech stocks that have performed well over the passed year saw some of the largest drops as investors reassess their value. Nasdaq stocks like Google, Facebook, Amazon and Yahoo were all down between 3% and 5%. A drop in Chinese exports and imports in March fueled concern over the world’s second-largest economy, while strong employment numbers released Thursday failed to boost markets.

“The market is very skittish,” David Pavan, a portfolio manager at ClariVest Asset Management LLC, told Bloomberg. “You see very sharp love and hate on a day-to-day basis. Today is a very strong preference for cheap stocks. Higher growth stocks get really hit hard.”

The Nasdaq fell 3.1 percent to 4,045 at closing. The S&P 500 dropped 2.1% to its lowest since Feb. 19 after two days of gains, and the Dow Jones was down 1.6%.