Markets Fail to Hold Gains

Stocks wavered on Thursday with the S&P 500 and NASDAQ Composite hitting intraday records before pulling back from those levels, as struggles in the broader market overshadowed blockbuster results from megacap tech giants Microsoft and Meta Platforms. The Dow Jones Industrial Average blundered 330.3 points to finish Thursday at 44,130.98. The broader market moved backward 23.51 points to 6,339.39. The NASDAQ settled back 7.23 points to 21,122.45. “Magnificent Seven” titans Microsoft jumped 4% and Meta rose 12% on the back of better-than-expected quarterly earnings. Software giant Microsoft said that annual revenue from its cloud computing service Azure exceeded $75 billion. Meta issued an upbeat third-quarter sales outlook, surpassing the Street’s estimates. Microsoft’s strong earnings print propelled the company to a $4-trillion market capitalization. Fellow Mag-7 names Apple and Amazon are slated to report earnings after the bell Thursday. The continued rise of tech stocks failed to boost the broader market on Thursday, however, with six of the 11 S&P 500 sectors in the red. UnitedHealth dipped 5% and Merck fell 4%, to lead the way lower. To be sure, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Thursday said negotiations with China are at a point where both sides “have the makings of a deal.” Bessent did not give any details on a potential deal, however, nor did he indicate when such an agreement could be made. The U.S. and China have until Aug. 12 before the truce over aggressive tariffs runs out. His comments come ahead of a key Friday, Aug. 1 trade deadline. Prices for the 10-year treasury fell back, raising yields back to Wednesday’s 4.37%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions. Oil prices fell back 85 cents to $69.15 U.S. a barrel. Gold prices faded $8.50 at $3,344.30 U.S. an ounce.