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U.S. stocks ended lower on Thursday, with tech stocks leading the decline as investors digested a batch of earnings from big tech companies and weighed Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s hawkish comments from the previous day. All three major indexes ended in negative territory.
How Did The Benchmarks Perform?
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) declined 0.2% or 109.88 points to end at 47,522.12 points.
The S&P 500 tumbled 1% or 68.25 points to close at 6,822.34 points. Consumer discretionary, communication services, materials and tech stocks were the worst performers.
The Technology Select Sector SPDR (XLK) lost 1.2%, the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR (XLY) lost 2.3%, while the Communication Services Select Sector SPDR (XLC) declined 1.7%. The Materials Select Sector SPDR (XLB) fell 1.3%. Eight of the 11 sectors of the benchmark index ended in negative territory.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq slid 1.6%, or 377.33 points, to finish at 23,581.14, snapping its three-day winning streak.
The fear gauge, CBOE Volatility Index (VIX), was up 0.06% to 16.91. Decliners outnumbered advancers on the NYSE by a 2.1-to-1 ratio. On the Nasdaq, a 1.98-to-1 ratio favored declining issues. A total of 20.32 billion shares were traded on Thursday, lower than the last 20-session average of 21.08 billion.
On the Nasdaq, there were 1,565 new highs and 3,095 new lows. On the NYSE, there were 177 new highs and 172 new lows.
The third-quarter earnings season is in full swing. Investors have been closely monitoring the quarterly results of industry bellwethers, as they have been deprived of economic data owing to the ongoing government shutdown.
A slew of tech giants reported quarterly results on Wednesday after the closing bell, while a few were set to report earnings on Thursday after market close. Microsoft Corporation ((MSFT - Free Report) ), Alphabet, Inc. ((GOOGL - Free Report) ) and Meta Platforms, Inc. ((META - Free Report) ) reported quarterly results on Wednesday. On Thursday, shares of Meta and Microsoft ended 11.33% and 2.9% lower, respectively.
Microsoft reported a capital expenditure of almost $35 billion for its first-quarter fiscal 2026 and said that the spending would increase in the coming year. Meta also forecast a rise in capital expenditure in the coming year due to higher investments in artificial intelligence (AI).
Investors have been enthusiastic about the rapid growth in the AI arena but surging spending in the field has raised concerns in recent times. The increased spending outlook for both Microsoft and Meta unsettled investors, leading stocks of both companies to decline, despite an earnings beat.
Microsoft reported first-quarter fiscal 2026 earnings of $4.13 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3.65 per share. Meta reported third-quarter 2025 earnings of $7.25 per share, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $6.61 per share. Meta has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
However, shares of Alphabet jumped 2.5% after the company reported third-quarter 2025 earnings of $2.87 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.26 per share.
Trump-Xi Jinping Meeting in Focus
Traders also closely watched President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping’s meeting in South Korea. Trump agreed to roll back some tariffs on China if Beijing agreed to resume soybean and other agricultural goods purchases.
Trump also agreed to slash fentanyl tariffs to 10% on China, bringing the overall duties on Chinese imports to 47%. Per the new deal, China will crack down on fentanyl trafficking into the United States.
Thursday’s losses come after all three major indexes hit fresh record-closing highs earlier this week. Indexes retreated on Wednesday even after the Federal Reserve cut the interest rate by a quarter point. The decline came after Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s comments cast uncertainty over another 25 basis point rate cut in December.
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Stock Market News for Oct 31, 2025
U.S. stocks ended lower on Thursday, with tech stocks leading the decline as investors digested a batch of earnings from big tech companies and weighed Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s hawkish comments from the previous day. All three major indexes ended in negative territory.
How Did The Benchmarks Perform?
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) declined 0.2% or 109.88 points to end at 47,522.12 points.
The S&P 500 tumbled 1% or 68.25 points to close at 6,822.34 points. Consumer discretionary, communication services, materials and tech stocks were the worst performers.
The Technology Select Sector SPDR (XLK) lost 1.2%, the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR (XLY) lost 2.3%, while the Communication Services Select Sector SPDR (XLC) declined 1.7%. The Materials Select Sector SPDR (XLB) fell 1.3%. Eight of the 11 sectors of the benchmark index ended in negative territory.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq slid 1.6%, or 377.33 points, to finish at 23,581.14, snapping its three-day winning streak.
The fear gauge, CBOE Volatility Index (VIX), was up 0.06% to 16.91. Decliners outnumbered advancers on the NYSE by a 2.1-to-1 ratio. On the Nasdaq, a 1.98-to-1 ratio favored declining issues. A total of 20.32 billion shares were traded on Thursday, lower than the last 20-session average of 21.08 billion.
On the Nasdaq, there were 1,565 new highs and 3,095 new lows. On the NYSE, there were 177 new highs and 172 new lows.
Megacap Tech Giants Report Earnings, Stocks Plummet
The third-quarter earnings season is in full swing. Investors have been closely monitoring the quarterly results of industry bellwethers, as they have been deprived of economic data owing to the ongoing government shutdown.
A slew of tech giants reported quarterly results on Wednesday after the closing bell, while a few were set to report earnings on Thursday after market close. Microsoft Corporation ((MSFT - Free Report) ), Alphabet, Inc. ((GOOGL - Free Report) ) and Meta Platforms, Inc. ((META - Free Report) ) reported quarterly results on Wednesday. On Thursday, shares of Meta and Microsoft ended 11.33% and 2.9% lower, respectively.
Microsoft reported a capital expenditure of almost $35 billion for its first-quarter fiscal 2026 and said that the spending would increase in the coming year. Meta also forecast a rise in capital expenditure in the coming year due to higher investments in artificial intelligence (AI).
Investors have been enthusiastic about the rapid growth in the AI arena but surging spending in the field has raised concerns in recent times. The increased spending outlook for both Microsoft and Meta unsettled investors, leading stocks of both companies to decline, despite an earnings beat.
Microsoft reported first-quarter fiscal 2026 earnings of $4.13 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3.65 per share. Meta reported third-quarter 2025 earnings of $7.25 per share, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $6.61 per share. Meta has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
However, shares of Alphabet jumped 2.5% after the company reported third-quarter 2025 earnings of $2.87 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.26 per share.
Trump-Xi Jinping Meeting in Focus
Traders also closely watched President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping’s meeting in South Korea. Trump agreed to roll back some tariffs on China if Beijing agreed to resume soybean and other agricultural goods purchases.
Trump also agreed to slash fentanyl tariffs to 10% on China, bringing the overall duties on Chinese imports to 47%. Per the new deal, China will crack down on fentanyl trafficking into the United States.
Thursday’s losses come after all three major indexes hit fresh record-closing highs earlier this week. Indexes retreated on Wednesday even after the Federal Reserve cut the interest rate by a quarter point. The decline came after Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s comments cast uncertainty over another 25 basis point rate cut in December.