Which U.S. stock index lost about 78% of its value after the dot-com bubble peak?

The Nasdaq Composite lost about 78% of its value after the dot-com bubble peak.

The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite reached an intraday peak of 5,132.52 on 10 March 2000. After the dot-com bubble burst, it fell to 1,108.49 by 10 October 2002, a decline of roughly 78%. The crash erased enormous market value from internet, software and telecommunications companies.

Many firms had attracted investment despite limited revenue, weak profits or business models based mainly on rapid user growth. Venture funding and public offerings encouraged companies to expand quickly, while investors assumed that internet adoption would translate into immediate financial success.

The Nasdaq’s decline was much steeper than the fall in broader U.S. indexes because technology and communications shares were especially exposed. The index eventually surpassed its 2000 record many years later, but the collapse remains a defining example of a speculative technology bubble.