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Indexes down: Dow 0.7%, S&P 500 1.1%, Nasdaq 1.9%
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Tesla shareholders approve $1 trillion CEO pay package
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Expedia ( EXPE ) jumps after annual revenue growth forecast hike
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Take-Two slumps after delaying GTA VI launch
(Updates prices, analyst comment)
By Twesha Dikshit and Purvi Agarwal
Nov 7 (Reuters) - Wall Street's main indexes extended
losses to a second session on Friday, and were set for weekly
declines, as concerns about the economy and sky-high valuations
in the technology sector soured sentiment.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq declined almost 2% on Thursday
after Wall Street executives earlier this week warned a market
correction could be on the way.
The Dow is set for its steepest weekly loss in four, while
the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq are poised for their worst weekly
performances since March.
Optimism around artificial intelligence has pushed markets
to all-time highs this year, but concerns over monetization of
the technology and circular spending within the industry has
dampened enthusiasm for U.S. stocks in recent days.
"As markets price in more and more excitement around the AI
narrative and it gets increasingly difficult to have conviction
that it's going to be ... worth all of this investment, you're
going to get a little more volatility," said Jeff Buchbinder,
LPL Financial's chief equity strategist.
Tech stocks such as Nvidia ( NVDA ) and Broadcom ( AVGO )
fell 4.3% and 5%, respectively. The information technology
sector and the broader semiconductor index were
set for their biggest weekly declines in seven months.
Microchip Technology ( MCHP ) shares dropped 10.1% after
forecasting quarterly net sales below estimates.
At 11:45 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average
fell 281.15 points, or 0.60%, the S&P 500 lost 69.50
points, or 1.03%, and the Nasdaq Composite lost 410.65
points, or 1.78%.
The Russell 2000 hit an over seven-week low.
The CBOE Volatility Index, Wall Street's fear gauge,
hit its highest level in three weeks.
Tesla shareholders approved the largest corporate
pay package in history for CEO Elon Musk. Shares fell 4.7%
tracking broader market sentiment and weighed on the consumer
discretionary sector.
On the earnings front, data compiled by LSEG until Friday
showed 82.5% of the 446 companies in the S&P 500 that have
reported results so far have beaten Wall Street expectations,
the highest rate of better-than-expected results since the
second quarter of 2021.
Expedia ( EXPE ) jumped 16% to top the S&P 500 after the
online travel platform boosted its forecast for full-year
revenue growth and posted third-quarter profit above
expectations.
ECONOMIC CONCERNS LINGER
The longest U.S. government shutdown in history has led to
an information gap, with Federal Reserve policymakers divided on
the future of monetary policy as private data paints a mixed
picture of the economy.
The preliminary reading of the University of Michigan's
Consumer Sentiment Index was 50.3 this month, the lowest since
June 2022.
Survey participants' assessment of current conditions was
largely responsible for the drop, plunging 10.8% to the lowest
reading in the survey's history.
"The markets are more worried about the jobs situation right
now, given we've had additional layoff announcements," said
Buchbinder.
"We're flying a little bit blind... so we need to combine a
lack of information with increasing fears."
Among others, Block slumped 10.6% after missing
third-quarter profit expectations, and Take-Two Interactive
declined 8.5% after delaying its popular video game GTA
VI to November 2026.
Declining issues outnumbered advancers by a 1.5-to-1 ratio
on the NYSE and by a 2.39-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
The S&P 500 posted 11 new 52-week highs and 13 new lows
while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 22 new highs and 282 new
lows.