Quick overview

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The Nasdaq Composite and S&P 500 declined amid the tech blood bath.. Mixed retail earnings and the latest Federal Reserve meeting minutes also influenced investor sentiment. The tech-heavy Nasdaq dropped 0.67 percent, closing at 21,172.86, while the broader market index fell 0.24 percent to end at 6,395.78. On Wednesday, the S&P 500 experienced its fourth consecutive loss, and the Nasdaq had its second straight decline.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average, however, rose 16.04 points, or 0.04 percent, ending at 44,938.31. Several well-known semiconductor and tech companies continued to generate profits for investors, fueling concerns over their high valuations and the long-term prospects of the artificial intelligence market.

The session concluded with Nvidia slightly down, while Broadcom and Advanced Micro Devices each lost about 1 percent. Intel’s stock dropped roughly 7 percent, and Palantir declined about 1 percent. Major tech giants—Apple, Amazon, Alphabet, and Meta dipped in the mid-week session.

Central bankers expressed concerns about inflation and the labor market, but mostly agreed that it was too early to lower interest rates, according to minutes from the Federal Reserve’s July meeting released on Wednesday. For the first time since 1993, two voting Fed officials dissented, with Fed Governors Christopher Waller and Michelle Bowman voicing disagreement. At that time, policymakers maintained steady interest rates.

“In general, participants identified risks to both sides of the Committee’s dual mandate, with a focus on upside risk to inflation and downside risk to employment,” the minutes stated.

Although “the majority of participants judged the upside risk to inflation as the greater of these two risks,” a few believed that the employment risk was more significant. Investors will be watching for clues about the future direction of interest rates in the upcoming minutes and Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s remarks on Friday.