Stock market today: Nasdaq leads declines as stocks extend slide

US tech stocks extended losses on Wednesday morning, coming off a steep sell-off fueled by worries about economic growth and the artificial intelligence trade amid a slide in Nvidia (NVDA) shares.

The S&P 500 (^GSPC) was just below the flat line, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) led the losses, declining about 0.4%. Meanwhile, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) added about 0.2%.

Stocks are pulling back as Nvidia shares slump, an indication that faith in the AI boom that has driven much of this year’s gains is seeping out of the market. The AI juggernaut lost $279 billion in market value on Tuesday, and its shares were lower by about 1% Wednesday morning after US regulators reportedly stepped up an antitrust probe.

At the same time, concerns about cracks in the US economy have revived somewhat after a lukewarm reading on factory activity. Investors are keeping a watchful eye on fresh data as they calibrate the likely size of the Federal Reserve interest rate cut expected within weeks.

The rocky start to September now has investors bracing for more volatility as a historically tough month for stocks follows a turbulent August. Though markets managed to shake off that month’s losses, analysts suggest stocks may not be in the clear yet.

Also on Wednesday, data showed job openings fell to 7.67 million in July, the lowest level since January 2021 and another sign of labor market cooling. After the data, markets moved to price in a nearly 50% chance the Federal Reserve slashes interest rates by 50 basis points by the end of its September meeting, up from a 38% chance the day prior, per the CME FedWatch Tool.

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Wed, September 4, 2024 at 4:05 PM GMT+2

Job openings fall to lowest level since January 2021

Job openings fell more than expected in July as investors closely watch for signs of further cooling in the labor market as the Federal Reserve nears the start of its interest rate cutting cycle.

New data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics released Wednesday showed there were 7.67 million jobs open at the end of July, a decrease from the 7.9 million seen in June. This marked the lowest number of job openings since January 2021.

June’s figure was revised lower from the 8.18 million open jobs initially reported. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg had expected the report to show 8.1 million openings in June.

The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) also showed 5.5 million hires were made during the month, a slight uptick from June. The hiring rate ticked up to 3.5% in July, up from 3.3% in June.
Wed, September 4, 2024 at 3:37 PM GMT+2

Tech the lone laggard at the open

US tech stocks extended losses on Wednesday morning, coming off a steep sell-off fueled by worries about economic growth and the AI trade amid a slide in Nvidia (NVDA) shares.

The S&P 500 (^GSPC) fell about 0.3%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) led the losses, declining about 0.7%. Meanwhile, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) added just less than 0.1%.

Information Technology (XLK), led by a more than 2% decline in Nvidia (NVDA), was the lone sector underperforming the S&P 500 on Wednesday morning, sliding more than 1%.

Source: Yahoo Finance