Yahoo Finance Stocks fall as tech shares sink, US economy slows
London's stock market bucked the trend in reaching another record high on Thursday, but Wall Street and eurozone equities fell as tech shares sank after Meta signaled an AI spending spree and data showed slower US economic growth.
The US growth figures surprised analysts who have been reassured by robust US labor and retail sales data, prompting a resumption of selling that has taken hold of the market in April.
US gross domestic product grew 1.6 percent in the first quarter, much slower than anticipated as consumer spending and exports decelerated.
"The GDP miss likely took investors off guard -- particularly with how solid some of this year's economic reports have been and with strength in the labor market," said Bret Kenwell, US investment analyst at the eToro trading platform.
"It's not necessarily a report to panic over, but it's one to pay attention to," Kenwell said.
While Wall Street indices spent the entire session in the red, stocks cut their losses as the day progressed, suggesting some bargain hunting.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished at 38,085.73, down 1.0 percent but about 330 points above its session low.
"We had a very prolific rally over the last four or five months, we've hit a soft patch now," said Angelo Kourkafas of Edward Jones.
"The economy's slowing down is not as bad as it appears on the surface," he said.
Meta reported soaring quarterly profits on Wednesday but worried investors by announcing that it expects spending between $35 billion to $40 billion -- more than previously forecast -- due to investments in artificial intelligence.
Shares of Meta finished down 10.6 percent. Other large tech shares were also under pressure.
- London bucks trend -
London's FTSE 100 index bucked the trend as it struck 8,102.14 points to briefly reach an all-time high for a third session running, ending in positive territory despite the declines elsewhere.
Shares in mining group Anglo American soared 16 percent after news of a $38.8 billion takeover bid by rival BHP.
"The FTSE 100 is having the time of its life as takeovers continue to power the market," said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell.
"BHP's move on Anglo American has got investors excited at who else in the blue-chip UK stock index might be next for a bid."
Well-received earnings sent share prices jumping for other British companies, including drugmaker AstraZeneca, lender Barclays and consumer goods firm Unilever.
Traders also kept an eye on Japan as the yen wallowed at a fresh three-decade low above 155 per dollar, a level many observers saw as likely to see authorities intervene in currency markets.
- Key figures around 2030 GMT -
New York - Dow: DOWN 1.0 percent at 38,085.80 (close)
New York- S&P 500: DOWN 0.5 percent at 5,048.42 (close)
New York - Nasdaq: DOWN 0.6 percent at 15,611.76 (close)
London - FTSE 100: UP 0.5 percent at 8,078.86 (close)
Paris - CAC 40: DOWN 0.9 percent at 8,016.65 (close)
Frankfurt - DAX: DOWN 1.0 percent at 17,923.79 (close)
EURO STOXX 50: DOWN 1.0 percent at 4,939.71 (close)
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 2.2 percent at 37,628.48 (close)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 0.5 percent at 17,284.54 (close)
Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.3 percent at 3,052.90 (close)
Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0733 from $1.0699
Pound/dollar: UP at $1.2514 from $1.2464
Euro/pound: DOWN at 85.74 pence from 85.83 pence
Dollar/yen: UP at 155.64 yen from 155.35 yen on Wednesday
Brent North Sea Crude: UP 1.1 percent at $89.01 per barrel
West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.9 percent at $83.57 per barrel
burs-jmb/nro
