Major U.S. benchmark averages retreated from record highs on Monday, driven by declines in technology shares and investor caution ahead of pivotal inflation data later this week.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 240.6 points, or 0.5% to 44,401.9, the S&P 500 slipped 37.4 points, or 0.6% to 6,052.8 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq fell 135.4 points, or 0.7% to 19,721.4.
Nvidia's stock dropped 2.6% after Chinese regulators launched an antimonopoly investigation into the AI chipmaker, which has become a symbol of the artificial intelligence boom. The company’s shares are still up over 179% in 2024.
Other major tech stocks, including Tesla, Meta Platforms, and Netflix, also experienced declines.
Bitcoin’s price slipped, signalling reduced investor appetite for high-risk assets. The cryptocurrency had reached a record US$100,000 last Wednesday.
The downturn follows a strong week, where the S&P 500 and Nasdaq set new records with weekly gains of 1% and 3.3%, respectively. In contrast, the Dow ended last week 0.6% lower.
Market sentiment is focused on Wednesday’s consumer price index (CPI) release. with markets anticipating a slight uptick, forecasting a 0.2% monthly increase and a 2.7% annual rise.
On the bond markets, 10-year and 2-year yields were at 4.199% and 4.129%, respectively.