Wall Street took a sharp hit on Thursday, marking the roughest trading session in more than a month as technology shares led a broad decline. The Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbled 797.60 points, or 1.65%, closing at 47,457.22. The S&P 500 slid 1.66% to end at 6,737.49, while the Nasdaq Composite dropped 2.29% to 22,870.36. Even the Russell 2000 joined the slide, posting its biggest drop since October 10.
This downturn erased much of the Nasdaq’s earlier gains for the week, leaving it down nearly 1% and as the only major index facing a weekly loss. Tech giants bore the brunt, with Nvidia, Broadcom, and Alphabet dragging the sector lower. The Nasdaq even dipped below its 50-day moving average of 22,810.13 during the day, a level it hadn’t closed under since late April.
Beyond tech, communication services suffered too, with Disney shares plunging nearly 8% after reporting mixed fourth-quarter results. The company posted adjusted earnings of $1.11 per share, beating estimates of $1.05, but revenue came in at $22.46 billion, short of the expected $22.75 billion.
Shifting investor sentiment on interest rates fueled the pessimism. Markets now see just over a 51% chance of a Federal Reserve quarter-point cut in December, down from 62.9% the day before, according to the CME FedWatch Tool. Fed Chair Jerome Powell and other officials have voiced caution on further easing, adding to the uncertainty.
Valuation worries in the AI space continue to weigh on sentiment, even as some experts point to broader benefits for the American economy. Is AI the next big boom or bust?
“Part of the, I think, AI narrative is that at some point all this capital expenditure is going to actually manifest itself. The benefits of it will manifest itself within the broader economy, so if you start seeing health care and manufacturing, industrials start to actually benefit from AI, that supports the overarching narrative, which is AI capex is going to enhance productivity across the board,” said Ron Albahary, chief investment officer at Laird Norton Wealth Management.
The recent government shutdown, resolved when President Donald Trump signed a funding bill extending operations through January, delayed crucial data releases like jobs and inflation reports. This gap could stir more volatility as information flows resume.
“While we have always expected that many of the data points missed during the shutdown will remain dark, there are questions about what the inflation and jobs data will look like once these reports come back online… We would not be surprised to see some market chop over the coming weeks as the government gears and economic data presses get turning again,” noted Carol Schleif, chief market strategist at BMO Private Wealth.
Krishna Guha, head of global policy and central bank strategy at Evercore ISI, added: “These developments chip away at our confidence the Fed will cut in December without giving us any more confidence a skip to January is a better bet… This leaves us still seeing a December cut more likely than not but only 55-60 per cent.”
Not everything was bleak, though. Some American firms showed resilience amid the turmoil. Cisco surged over 7% after beating earnings expectations with adjusted EPS of $1 against estimates of 98 cents, and revenue of $14.88 billion topping the $14.77 billion forecast, while raising its guidance. Sealed Air jumped 19% on news of acquisition talks, and Planet Fitness rose 4% on strong growth outlook.
Bitcoin also felt the pressure, sinking to $98,072.76—its lowest since May—before edging up slightly to $98,215. Gold and silver are both up 4% for the week.
Pullbacks like this remind us of the need for balance in America’s powerhouse economy. While tech has driven incredible innovation, overinflated valuations can create risks. Yet, the potential for AI to boost productivity in core sectors like manufacturing and health care points to a robust future, where American ingenuity turns challenges into opportunities for growth. Investors watching these shifts should stay vigilant, as the fundamentals of U.S. economic strength remain solid despite the noise.
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