05:19 PM EDT, 07/31/2025 (MT Newswires) -- Equities closed mostly lower on Thursday despite gains in Meta Platforms ( META ) and Microsoft ( MSFT ) shares, ahead of President Donald Trump's tariffs deadline of Friday.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.7% to 44,131, while the S&P 500 declined 0.4% to 6,339.4. The tech-heavy Nasdaq ended nearly flat at 21,122.5. Barring communication services and utilities, most sectors ended in the red, led by health care, while industrials was unchanged.

For the month of July, the Nasdaq advanced 3.7%, while the S&P 500 climbed 2.2%. The Dow gained 0.1%.

Meta shares surged 11%, among the best performers on the S&P 500, while Microsoft ( MSFT ) topped the Dow with a nearly 4% gain. Both tech giants delivered quarterly beats late Wednesday.

Meta and Microsoft ( MSFT ) posted "record (artificial intelligence) and data center growth-driven results that continue to support the bullish AI investment theme and drive increasing upward tech sector momentum," Tigress Financial said in a Thursday client note.

Roblox ( RBLX ) shares soared 10% after the video game platform raised its full-year bookings guidance as the success of farm simulation title "Grow a Garden" helped drive a jump in second-quarter engagement.

Align Technology ( ALGN ) shares plunged nearly 37%, the worst performer on the S&P 500. The company late Wednesday outlined a global workforce reduction plan and issued a downbeat third-quarter sales outlook following a second-quarter miss.

"Strong (second-quarter) corporate results will continue to be the market upside catalyst as the (Federal Reserve) remains on hold, and the market awaits further trade deal announcements, especially from India and China," Tigress said.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell remained noncommittal regarding potential interest rate cuts after the central bank again held its policy rate steady on Wednesday.

The US administration has set a Friday deadline for countries to negotiate trade deals with Washington or face higher tariffs. On Wednesday, Trump said his tariffs deadline "will not be extended."

The US agreed to extend the existing tariffs on Mexico for 90 days because the "complexities of a deal with Mexico are somewhat different than other nations," Trump said in a social media post Thursday.

The US has struck trade accords with Thailand and Cambodia, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday, citing US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.

In a separate social media post, Trump said it would be "very hard" for the US to make a trade deal with Canada, which plans to recognize the State of Palestine at a United Nations meeting in September.

US Treasury yields were mixed, with the 10-year rate falling 0.6 basis point to 4.37% while the two-year rate rose 0.4 basis point to 3.96%.

US consumer spending rose less than projected in June, while the Fed's preferred inflation metric held steady on an annual basis, government data showed.

"Consumer spending eked out a small gain in June, and a further slowdown is likely in (the third quarter) as tariffs begin to weigh on real income growth," Oxford Economics said. "A boost from increased consumer confidence and tax cuts is probably coming, but we think it's unlikely to be felt until 2026."

Weekly applications for unemployment insurance in the US rose less than expected, while continuing claims held steady, government data showed Thursday, ahead of Friday's jobs data for the month of July.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics is expected to report Friday that the US economy added 104,000 nonfarm jobs in July, which would mark a drop from a 147,000 increase reported the month prior, according to a Bloomberg poll.

"We are encouraged by the recent behavior of the claims data, and we expect that private (nonfarm payrolls) will rebound in the July report," Jefferies Chief US Economist Thomas Simons said in a note e-mailed to clients.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil was down 0.9% at $69.40 a barrel in Thursday late-afternoon trade.

Gold was down 0.2% at $3,344.6 per troy ounce, while silver slid 2.5% to $36.80 per ounce.