Stocks for Alphabet, and Facebook took a hit on Monday after reports on Friday said the US Justice Department is preparing an antitrust prove of tech giant Google.
CNBC reported:
Politicians and technology executives have spent well over a year debating the proper role for regulators in the tech industry, which has assumed outsized influence over the U.S. economy.
Monday was the day that the chatter turned to early stages of action, and the market punished big tech.
Investors were most concerned about Facebook and Google parent Alphabet on Monday, sending shares of each down more than 6%. Amazon dropped more than 4.6% and Apple slid 1%. In total, they lost about $130 billion in market value and led a 1.6% slump in the Nasdaq Composite, sending the tech-heavy index into correction territory — down more than 10% off its record high set in April.
Following reports late Friday that the Justice Department is preparing an antitrust probe of Google, Reuters reported on Monday that the same department has been given jurisdiction over Apple’s practices as part of a broader review into the behavior of tech companies.
And the House Judiciary Committee led by Jerry Nadler announced on Monday that it will hold hearings into the technology giants.