New York: The Nasdaq Composite index fell about 2.5 per cent on Monday, hit by a slump in Apple Inc shares after two suppliers cut their forecasts, sparking a selloff in other iPhone component makers and weighing on technology stocks in general.

Apple shares fell 4.7 per cent to $209.67, their lowest since July 27, after Lumentum Holdings, the main supplier for Face ID technology, and screen maker Japan Display cut their forecasts.

The technology sector, which has fueled much of the US stock market’s bull run, fell 3.3 per cent, while the Philadelphia SE Semiconductor index dropped 4.4 per cent.

“The valuation in tech sector could potentially go lower and the semiconductors are really going to weigh in the near-term, especially with the fresh releases in numbers and the China situation,” said Lindsey Bell, investment strategist at CFRA Research in New York.

“You always have regulation concern with tech, and with semis, we’re hitting a low with the business cycle and that’s a big concern.”

At 11:51 am ET the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 456.55 points, or 1.76 per cent, at 25,532.75, the S&P 500 was down 44.59 points, or 1.60 per cent, at 2,736.42 and the Nasdaq Composite was down 190.64 points, or 2.57 per cent, at 7,216.27.

A holiday in the US bond markets for Veterans Day could keep trading volumes muted, analysts said.

“With the bond market closed, there is a lack of catalyst to push the market higher,” said Bell.

Nine of the 11 major S&P sectors were lower, with slight gains seen in the defensive real estate and utilities sectors.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc fell 5.8 per cent, the most on the Dow. The financial sector declined 1.6 per cent.

Altria Group fell 1.8 per cent and Philip Morris International Inc dropped about 1.2 per cent after the Wall Street Journal reported that the US health regulator is planning to ban menthol cigarettes.