United States benchmarks slipped on Monday (Tuesday AEST) as investors turned their focus to Nvidia’s closely watched earnings later this week, following a record-setting rally on Friday.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 349.3 points, or 0.8%, to close at 45,282.5. The S&P 500 declined 27.6 points, or 0.4%, to 6,439.3, while the Nasdaq Composite eased 47.2 points, or 0.2%, to 21,449.3.
The Nasdaq had initially been supported by gains in Nvidia, which rose 1%. The chipmaker has drawn a series of upbeat analyst calls ahead of its quarterly results due Wednesday after the U.S. bell (Thursday AEST).
Intel shares also saw early strength before finishing 1% lower. The moves followed Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick’s disclosure on Friday that the U.S. government had acquired a 10% stake in the company.
White House economic advisor Kevin Hassett described the purchase as part of a broader strategy to build a sovereign wealth fund, suggesting further transactions could follow across multiple industries.
President Donald Trump also reinforced the message, saying he would make deals like the Intel investment “all day long”.
The declines came after a powerful rally on Friday that lifted the Dow to fresh records, fuelled by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s comments signalling the central bank could begin easing monetary policy as soon as next month.
According to the CME Group FedWatch Tool, markets now place an 83.3% chance on a quarter-point rate cut in September.
On the bond markets, 10-year rates were up 0.5% to 4.277%, while 2-year yields were up 0.7% to 3.724%.
