NEW YORK: Wall Street ended sharply lower on Thursday as declines in technology stocks pulled major U.S. indexes down and losses broadened across the market. The Nasdaq Composite slid 469.32 points, or 2.03%, to 22,597.15. The S&P 500 fell 108.71 points, or 1.57%, to 6,832.76, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 669.42 points, or 1.34%, to 49,451.98.
Technology losses were led by Cisco Systems, which sank 12.3% for its biggest one-day drop since May 2022 after reporting a quarterly adjusted gross margin that missed expectations. Weakness in large technology and chip-related stocks weighed on broader benchmarks, and the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index finished down 2.5%. The S&P 500 software industry index fell 1.7% for a second straight session.
AppLovin recorded one of the steepest drops among prominent U.S. stocks, tumbling 19.7% after releasing quarterly results. In contrast, data-center operator Equinix climbed 10.4% after forecasting annual revenue above estimates, and it was the top gainer in the S&P 500 real estate group. The divergent moves highlighted how company results and outlook statements continued to drive sharp single-day swings.
Shares of personal-computer makers also fell after Lenovo warned of shipment pressure tied to a memory-chip shortage. HP Inc. ended down 4.5% and Dell Technologies fell 9%. In economic data, initial jobless claims for the week ended Feb. 7 declined to 227,000, while existing-home sales dropped 8.4% in January to a 3.91 million annual rate. Treasury yields moved lower, with the 10-year note near 4.10% late in the session.
Tech slide hits transports too
Transportation stocks posted some of the session’s largest percentage declines. The Dow Jones Transportation Average fell 4%, and several freight and logistics companies dropped by double digits. Landstar System tumbled 15.6%, C.H. Robinson Worldwide fell 14.5%, and Expeditors International slid 13.2%. The sector’s weakness coincided with a near 30% rise in Algorhythm Holdings after it announced an artificial-intelligence tool aimed at improving trucking efficiency.
While technology and transportation shares retreated, traditionally defensive areas held up better. Utilities, consumer staples and real estate outperformed the broader market during the decline, and Equinix’s rally provided a notable lift to real estate shares. Several large-cap stocks that have been influential in recent market gains finished lower, and Treasury yields broadly declined alongside the equity selloff.
Market breadth and heavy volume
Market breadth showed widespread selling pressure. On the New York Stock Exchange, declining issues outnumbered advancing stocks by about 2.17 to 1, and the Nasdaq exchange showed a similar pattern with decliners ahead by roughly 2.74 to 1. The S&P 500 logged 99 new 52-week highs and 32 new lows. Trading was active, with about 22.45 billion shares changing hands on U.S. exchanges, above the 20-session average of 20.78 billion.
The retreat followed a stretch of choppy trading as corporate earnings and economic reports arrived in quick succession. The next major U.S. release on the calendar is the January Consumer Price Index, scheduled for Friday. By the close, the day’s largest drops clustered in technology and other growth-oriented groups, while a smaller set of rate-sensitive and defensive sectors showed relative strength as indexes ended near their session lows. – By Content Syndication Services.