Shares of the Nasdaq-100 ETF plunged 1.7% to $564.28 on March 27, extending a brutal week that has erased nearly $24 per share since March 23, as Iran's blockade of the Strait of Hormuz — the chokepoint for roughly one-fifth of the world's oil — sent crude past $110/barrel and triggered a classic flight from risky assets into safer havens like bonds and gold. QQQ Drops Below $565 as Hormuz Blockade and Dual Energy Shocks Pummel Tech — Is a Deeper Correction Ahead?
Shares of the Nasdaq-100 ETF slid 1.7% to $564.28 on March 27, deepening a selloff that has wiped $24 per share in five sessions. The weekend approaches with war tensions mounting and investors shying from risk, as stocks hit nearly seven-month lows in the worst session since the war began.
Brent crude climbed back above $110/barrel and U.S. Treasury yields rallied to nearly nine-month highs on inflation fears. Three colliding forces explain why tech shareholders are bearing outsized pain.
• Oil Above $110 Raises the Specter of Stagflation — Slower Growth Plus Higher Prices
Brent crude surpassed $100/barrel on March 8 for the first time in four years, rising to $126 at its peak.
Barclays estimates sustained $100 oil could cut global GDP growth by 0.2 percentage points to 2.8% while pushing inflation 0.7 points higher to 3.8%. For tech giants that depend on advertising and consumer spending, a weaker economy means fewer ad dollars, while rising energy costs inflate data-center electricity bills — squeezing profits from both sides.
• Australia's LNG Shutdown Piles On to an Already Broken Energy Market
Three Australian plants providing about 8% of the world's LNG have had output curbed by the cyclone, a further blow to Asian buyers reeling from the halt of Qatari shipments.
Combined with the Middle East shock, more than a quarter of global LNG supply is now affected. Higher natural gas prices directly hit the electricity costs of AI-focused data centers — a growing expense line for every major QQQ constituent.
• Meta's 8% Plunge Shows How Quickly One Stock Can Drag the Whole Index
Meta fell 7.96% to $547.54 after two U.S. jury verdicts found it liable for harms to young users.
Experts said the verdicts could open the company to a wave of litigation, potentially resulting in billions in fines. Because QQQ is weighted by company size, a megacap meltdown like Meta's acts as an anchor on the entire fund.
• The Nasdaq Is Entering Correction Territory, and Outflows Are Accelerating
The Nasdaq Composite entered correction territory Thursday, having fallen more than 10% from its October 2025 peak.
The QQQ ETF has seen over $10.2 billion in outflows this year.
Major indexes are on pace for the fifth straight losing week, a streak last achieved during 2022's miserable market year. With Trump's April 6 deadline for Iran talks looming and no ceasefire in sight, the risk-off trade has room to run.