Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange during morning trading on October 14, 2026 in New York City.
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Stocks were mixed Thursday as concerns grew that tech companies were overspending on artificial intelligence, prompting investors to exit the trade and look for value elsewhere.
of Dow Jones Industrial Average increased by 454 points (0.9%), while high-tech-focused companies Nasdaq Composite It fell 0.3%. of S&P500 It rose by 0.2%.
coreweave Losses widened further on Wednesday, sending the stock down 2%. Shares fell more than 15% in premarket trading as investors grew concerned that the company was borrowing heavily to develop its AI. Coreweave corporate bond yields also rose sharply.
“When U.S. Treasury yields hit 5%, the highest since the early 2000s, investors will start weighing that against big bets on AI,” said Alex Shahidi, Evoque co-chief investment officer at MAI Capital Management. “It’s not about whether you’re into AI, it’s about how much you want to focus on it.”
Compounding concerns in the AI space, sources told CNBC that Anthropic’s sales rose to $16.8 billion in the third quarter, but some traders are concerned that the AI giant’s sales aren’t growing fast enough to justify the chipmaker’s steep profits.
seagate technology and western digital In addition to this week’s decline, SK Hynixcausing South Korea’s Kospi index to plummet overnight. Traders are starting to worry about a potential oversupply of memory chips as South Korea faces increased competition from China. tesla CEO Elon Musk discussed the issue in a post on X, saying, “China will produce a lot of RAM in 2028.”
However, the market was supported by gains from areas other than technology. retailer stock walmart Big Pharma rose 2%. Merck It rose nearly 2%. nike The stock price also rose more than 5%.
Investors also responded to further insights on the inflation front. The producer price index in September increased by 1.3% from the previous month and 6.3% from the previous year, marking the largest monthly and annual increase since 2022.
Concerns that the U.S. Federal Reserve could tighten more aggressively before the end of the year weighed on stocks on Wednesday after new data showed consumer prices rose faster than expected in September from a year earlier.
“Today’s PPI report, following Wednesday’s CPI, confirms that inflation is worsening as energy prices remain high,” said David Russell, global head of market strategy at TradeStation. “With or without an election, prices are rising and the Fed may be forced to act.”
