IBM Shares Plunge 25% in Biggest Single-Day Fall in 58 Years

Shares of IBM (International Business Machines) tumbled 25.21% during Tuesday's Wall Street trading, marking the company's steepest single-day decline in 58 years. The sharp fall erased nearly $70 billion in market capitalization within hours. The stock closed at $217.07, with investors reacting negatively to the company's preliminary second-quarter financial update and weaker-than-expected business outlook.

IBM stated that second-quarter revenue is expected to grow by just 1% to around $17.2 billion, falling short of market expectations. While software revenue is projected to rise by 5%, the infrastructure business declined by 7%. CEO Arvind Krishna acknowledged that the company underestimated the rapid shift in customer spending toward AI infrastructure, including servers, storage, networking equipment, and memory chips. He also noted that increasing investments in cybersecurity after the AI boom further impacted IBM's business performance.