Tech stocks continued their recent volatility on Thursday with a sharp dip led by biotechnology companies but followed by some of the major industry names.
The Nasdaq Composite index of technology stocks ended the day down 3.1% at 4,054.11. Google fell 4.4%, Facebook lost 5.2%, Amazon slid 4.5% and Yahoo declined 4.22%.
[seealso slug=http://sale-online.click/2014/01/03/2013-tech-stock-performance/%5D%3C/p%3E%3Cp%3ESmaller tech stocks that have experienced a dramatic run-up in prices over the last year were among the hardest hit, with Netflix off 5.2%, Pandora 10.5% lower and LinkedIn down by 3.5%.
The broader market also declined, although not as much as the tech sector. The S&P 500 benchmark index fell 2% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 1.6%.
The recent volatility comes despite reasonably strong U.S. economic numbers. It has also coincided with a renewed confidence in Europe from investors.
Thursday's plunge leaves the Nasdaq 6.5% lower over the past month. Tech stocks have moved broadly lower in that time with the exception of Apple, which is down just 1.4%.
The recent weakness follows a 2013 that featured a 41% rise in the Nasdaq index. That run up, along with massive valuations for private tech companies, some without any revenue, fueled talk that the market was experiencing a bubble similar the one of the late 1990s. That ended with the index losing almost 75% of its value.