US stocks declined on Thursday amid a worsening macroeconomic backdrop and fresh doubts about AI raised by the latest earnings reports. The S&P 500 and the Dow each fell about 0.8%, while the Nasdaq 100 dropped nearly 2%.
Alphabet slid 6% after reporting its Q2 results overnight. The Google parent company lifted its full-year capital expenditure forecast to $205 billion, roughly double last year’s level, rekindling concerns about the sustainability of its heavy investment in AI infrastructure. Tesla sank 10% after posting weaker profits despite solid overall performance in the broader electric vehicle sector. Meta and Amazon also retreated, each losing more than 3%.
Rising fuel prices and heightened tensions between Iran and the US pushed Treasury yields higher, prompting markets to price in the likelihood of an interest rate hike before the end of the quarter. The move was reinforced by initial jobless claims, which fell to their lowest levels in six decades.
Financials remained under pressure, with capital markets firms particularly weak. Among other notable earnings, Comcast and RTX both traded higher after beating analysts’ estimates.
