US stocks today: AI stocks drop again; crude oil prices continue to climb
US stocks today: Shares of computer chip manufacturers and other companies that have benefited from the artificial intelligence boom came under renewed selling pressure on Thursday, dragging equity markets lower across the world. At the same time, oil prices continued to move higher amid the ongoing conflict with Iran.The S&P 500 declined 0.4%, a day after coming within 0.5% of the record high it reached last month. As of 7:05 PM IST, the Dow Jones Industrial Average had gained 64 points, or 0.1%, while the Nasdaq Composite was down 0.8%.Among the biggest decliners were AI-linked companies. Micron Technology, a major memory chip producer, dropped 3.2%, although the stock remains up an impressive 206% so far this year, supported by robust demand generated by AI-related investments, according to an AP report.Sandisk fell 5.3% but continues to show a year-to-date gain of 545%. Western Digital lost 5.1%, though its shares are still up 182% for the year.These companies have faced sustained pressure in recent weeks amid concerns that their valuations have risen too rapidly and that current demand for memory chips and processors may prove difficult to sustain if artificial intelligence fails to deliver the anticipated gains in profitability and productivity.The weakness came despite Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., widely regarded as a bellwether for the semiconductor industry, reporting quarterly profit that exceeded analysts’ expectations. While its Taiwan-listed shares rose 1.2%, the company’s US-listed stock slipped 1.6%.In South Korea, declines in AI heavyweights Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix pushed the Kospi index down 6.4%. The benchmark has experienced sharp swings in recent weeks because of the significant influence these two companies exert on the index. It had surged 6.2% a day earlier but has also recorded declines of 8.9%, 7.8% and 5.3% over the past two weeks.The Bank of Korea’s decision to raise interest rates also contributed to the market’s decline. It marked the country’s first rate increase since 2023 and was aimed at containing inflationary pressures stemming from the Iran conflict.Investors are increasingly concerned that central banks elsewhere may also be forced to raise interest rates in response to rising oil prices. While higher borrowing costs can help contain inflation, they also tend to slow economic activity and weigh on asset prices.In the US bond market, Treasury yields moved higher as crude oil prices continued to advance.Brent crude, the international benchmark, gained 0.7% to reach $85.55 per barrel, trading close to its highest level in a month.
