United States benchmarks fell for a third consecutive session on Thursday (Friday AEST), with losses across all three major benchmarks as a sell-off in Oracle and climbing Treasury yields weighed on sentiment.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 174.0 points, or 0.4%, to close at 45,947.3. The S&P 500 shed 33.3 points or 0.5% to finish at 6,604.7, while the Nasdaq Composite declined 113.2 points or 0.5%, settling at 22,384.7.
Oracle fell 5.6%, extending its losing streak to a third day as investors reassessed the strength of the artificial intelligence trade, amid growing concerns over lofty valuations and increasingly complex ties within the AI sector after a spate of recent deals.
Tesla also weighed on the market, sliding 4.4% to rank among the session’s biggest decliners.
Economic data offered a mixed backdrop. Initial jobless claims came in at 218,000 for the week ending 20 September, according to the Labor Department, well below the 235,000 forecast and down 14,000 from the prior week’s revised level.
The stronger-than-expected figures, alongside a sharp upward revision to second-quarter gross domestic product growth to 3.8%, suggested ongoing resilience in the U.S. economy.
The data could reinforce caution at the Federal Reserve, potentially delaying further interest rate cuts, a development that could undermine recent bullish momentum in equities.
Investors were also looking ahead to the release of the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge, the personal consumption expenditures price index, due Friday.
Meanwhile, political uncertainty loomed as agencies prepared for a potential government shutdown, with the Office of Management and Budget instructing departments to draft “reduction-in-force” plans.
Treasury yields climbed further, intensifying the pressure on rate-sensitive technology shares. The 10-year yield rose 0.7% to 4.176%, while the 2-year rate advanced 1.5% to 3.661%.
