(MENAFN) Wall Street suffered sharp losses Tuesday as investor anxiety over inflated technology stock valuations sent major indices tumbling and fear metrics surging to alarming levels.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average plummeted 498.50 points—a 1.07% decline—settling at 46,091.74. Meanwhile, the tech-heavy Nasdaq shed 275.23 points, dropping 1.21% to finish at 22,432.85. The benchmark S&P 500 declined 55.09 points, falling 0.83% to land at 6,617.32.

Market turbulence was underscored by a dramatic spike in the Volatility Index (VIX)—commonly referred to as the "fear index"—which surged 10.32% to reach 24.69, signaling heightened investor unease.

After the conclusion of the longest-ever federal government shutdown in U.S. history last week, market participants are scrutinizing newly released economic indicators with intense focus. Traders are particularly anticipating the employment report, a crucial dataset that remained unpublished throughout the shutdown period.

In preliminary labor market data, the U.S. Department of Labor disclosed that first-time unemployment benefit claims totaled 232,000 for the week ending Oct. 18. By comparison, claims stood at 219,000 during the week ending Sept. 20—the final reporting period before the federal shutdown commenced.

Separately, the ADP Research Institute revealed that private sector job losses averaged 2,500 positions weekly across the four-week span concluding Nov. 1.

Regarding monetary policy outlook, market sentiment around potential Federal Reserve interest rate reductions appears to be weakening. Money markets currently assign just a 50% likelihood to a December rate cut.

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