05:04 PM EST, 11/17/2025 (MT Newswires) -- US equity indexes dropped on Monday amid a broad-based sell-off, with volatility surging ahead of Nvidia's (NVDA) quarterly earnings and the upcoming release of the September jobs data.

The Nasdaq Composite fell 0.8% to 22,708.08, with the S&P 500 down 0.9% to 6,672.41 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average 1.2% lower at 46,590.24. Technology, energy, materials, and financials were among the steepest decliners. Communication services and utilities were the only sectors to gain.

The CBOE Volatility Index (VIX), also known as a fear gauge for the S&P 500, jumped 13% to 22.38. Most Treasury yields slipped, with the 10-year off slightly at 4.14% and the two-year little changed at 3.61%.

Among the five Magnificent-7 stocks that declined intraday, the worst performers were Nvidia (NVDA) and Apple ( AAPL ) , down by 1.9% and 1.8%, respectively.

Nvidia investors will likely be eyeing issues such as a tougher financing environment and capital expenditure concerns at some hyperscalers when the company releases Q3 results on Wednesday, BofA Securities said in a note emailed Monday. Investors will also focus on supply constraints and rising component costs, which may hit Nvidia's gross margin.

Apple ( AAPL ) lost a trial on Friday over whether it violated Masimo's ( MASI ) patents in some of its Apple Watch models and was ordered to pay $634 million in damages, news outlets reported.

Monday's top performer among Mag-7 was Alphabet (GOOG, GOOGL), up 3.1%, after Berkshire Hathaway ( BRK/A ) (BRK.A, BRK.B) disclosed in a Friday regulatory filing a $4.3 billion stake in the owner of the Google ( GOOG ) search engine. The stock was the top gainer in the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq.

Dell Technologies ( DELL ) slumped 8.4%, the worst performer on the S&P 500, after Morgan Stanley (MS) downgraded the company's stock rating to underweight from overweight. The investment bank also lowered its price target for Dell to $110 from $144.

In economic news, the New York Federal Reserve's Empire State manufacturing index surged to 18.7 in November from 10.7 in October, in contrast with the decrease expected to 5.8 in a survey compiled by Bloomberg. The index is one of the first manufacturing sector gauges to be released for November, and shows a quickening in the pace of expansion.

Meanwhile, US construction spending rose 0.2% in August, compared with a 0.1% decline expected in a survey compiled by Bloomberg and following an upwardly revised 0.2% increase in July.

The Labor Department is expected to release its numbers on Thursday regarding September hiring and unemployment, according to media reports. The Federal Open Market Committee's policy minutes for October are due for release on Wednesday.

The likelihood of the Fed leaving its target rate for fed funds unchanged in December surged to 55% as of late Monday, from zero likelihood a month ago, according to the CME FedWatch Tool.