NASDAQ backs off record highs under pressure from tech sector

US stock indexes mostly declined on Thursday as investors digested the Federal Reserve’s policy statement and remarks from Chair Jerome Powell, while attention turned to a fresh wave of corporate earnings.

Alphabet, Microsoft, and Meta released their quarterly results on Wednesday, while Apple and Amazon are scheduled to report after Thursday’s closing bell.

The Federal Reserve on Wednesday announced a 25-basis-point cut to the federal funds rate, bringing it down to a range of 3.75%–4.00%.

During his press conference, Fed Chair Jerome Powell highlighted a “significant division” among policymakers regarding the possibility of another rate cut at the December meeting.

Powell said available data suggest moderate growth in the US economy and confirmed that activity had remained strong prior to the government shutdown.

He also emphasized that a rate cut in December “is not a certainty,” noting that the Fed has not received official government data for four weeks, though existing indicators point to some weakness in the labor market.

As of 16:24 GMT, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.8% (or 365 points) to 47,991, while the S&P 500 slipped 0.2% (or 16 points) to 6,874. The Nasdaq Composite fell 0.8% (or 202 points) to 23,754.