The Nasdaq Composite reached a record closing high of 5,048.62 on March 10, 2000, before the dot-com crash.
The index had surged during the 1990s as investors bought shares of internet and technology companies. Many businesses had little revenue or no profits, but their prices rose rapidly because investors expected the internet to transform commerce and communications.
After the March 2000 peak, technology shares began a prolonged collapse. The Nasdaq lost roughly 78 percent of its value by October 2002. Companies with weak business models disappeared, while some survivors eventually became major technology firms.
The Nasdaq’s 2000 peak is often confused with the S&P 500’s 2000 record, which occurred on March 24. The Nasdaq Composite is especially technology-heavy, so it became the most visible benchmark for the bursting of the dot-com bubble. It later exceeded its 2000 closing record in 2015.