04:13 PM EDT, 06/04/2026 (MT Newswires) -- US equity indexes were mixed on Thursday amid a sell-off in tech stocks and a decline in crude oil futures, along with lower government bond yields.

* Challenger, Gray & Christmas said Thursday employers announced 97,006 layoffs in May, the highest for the month since 2020, up 16% from April and 3% from a year earlier.

* US initial jobless claims rose to 225,000 in the week ended May 30 from a downwardly revised 212,000 in the previous week, compared with expectations for 215,000 in a survey of analysts compiled by Bloomberg.

* The Associated Press reported on Thursday that Hezbollah rejected the latest ceasefire agreement between Israel and the Lebanese government, while the media outlet separately reported that the US House on Wednesday approved a war powers resolution that would halt US military action against Iran.

* July West Texas Intermediate crude oil fell $2.86 to settle at $93.16 per barrel, while August Brent crude, the global benchmark, was last seen down $2.53 at $95.28.

* Blackstone's (BX) shares were up about 8.3%, the top gainer on the S&P 500, after its Blackstone Private Credit Fund unit reportedly said repurchase requests equaled about 10% of shares outstanding in Q2, but it will fulfill requests representing just 5% of its value.

* Broadcom ( AVGO ) shares fell roughly 12%, the steepest decline on the Nasdaq, after it reported fiscal Q2 results late Wednesday. The company's fiscal Q3 and 2027 AI revenue outlook fell short of investor expectations, while Q2 results were slightly ahead of consensus, RBC and UBS said in separate notes.