NEW YORK (AP) – US stocks experienced a decline on Wednesday, cooling off the previous day’s surge Jumping. Within a few days, they are reflecting the profits from their all-time highs.
The S&P 500 fell by 0.6%, but is still within 4.2% of its record after a rise in bills, amidst the confusion surrounding President Donald Trump’s Trade War, which some speculate may be easing. Last month, the index was about 20% lower.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 244 points (0.6%), while the Nasdaq Composite decreased by 0.5%.
Trading activity was relatively subdued leading up to Wednesday’s major financial event involving nvidia. This occurred after the day’s deals had closed, with the AI favorite stock sliding 0.5% before then.
AP Audio: Wall Street drifts lower as we slow down our rolls
Wall Street has cooled from its previous highs. For more details, refer to AP’s Seth Sutel.
There were high hopes for the enthusiasm surrounding artificial intelligence technology. However, there are also concerns that despite this year’s stagnation, stock prices may be overvalued.
Companies like Macy’s reported a slight decline in revenue and earnings, yet their stocks fluctuated throughout the day. Analysts noted that the drop in revenue and earnings for the recent quarter was less severe than they expected.
Retailers maintained their revenue forecasts for the year, but have lowered profit expectations due to eased tariffs and consumer spending adjustments. This inventory adjustment led to a 0.3% drop in stocks.
Conversely, several other retailers delivered results that exceeded expectations for the latest quarter. Abercrombie & Fitch surged 14.7% after profits and revenues surpassed analyst predictions. CEO Fran Horowitz highlighted robust global business growth and the strength of the Hollister brand, which helped counterbalance weaknesses in the Abercrombie brand.
Dick’s Sporting Goods went up by 1.7% after surpassing analyst expectations for the recent quarter.
Octa, however, faced significant losses, falling 16.2%, despite its identity and access management results exceeding Wall Street’s expectations. Analysts termed it a solid performance, but investors may have been looking for more after the stock’s nearly 60% increase that day.
Video game retailer GameStop dipped by 10.9% after announcing the purchase of 4,710 Bitcoin, valued at over $500 million at current prices. The company indicated in late March that it could begin acquiring Bitcoin to store some of its cash at the Treasury.
The S&P 500 dropped by 32.99 points to 5,888.55. The Dow Jones Industrial Average decreased 244.95 points to 42,098.70, while the Nasdaq Composite fell by 98.23 points to 19,100.94.
In the bond market, the yield on 10-year Treasury bonds rose to 4.47% from 4.43% on Tuesday.
The bond market’s reaction was relatively muted following the Federal Reserve’s announcement Min from the latest Meeting earlier this month, during which the benchmark loan rate remained unchanged for the third consecutive time. Central banks are holding off on cutting interest rates, raising concerns about persistent inflation driven by Trump’s aggressive tariffs.
Last week, Treasury markets rattled worldwide. Japan also experienced similar fluctuations. On Wednesday, the auction for 40-year Japanese government bonds saw less interest from prospective buyers than any other time since July.
After years of extensive buying of Japanese government bonds to stimulate the economy, Japan’s central banks are now gradually scaling back, leading to decreased demand as other institutional investors also withdraw from purchasing these bonds. This reduction in buyers has resulted in higher yields.
In international stock markets, indices were slightly lower across most of Europe and Asia.
Korea was an exception, benefiting from gains in Samsung Electronics and other high-tech companies.
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AP business writers Matt Ott and Elaine Kurtenbach contributed.
Source: apnews.com