FMC plunges 33% on lower quarterly earnings forecast
Uber decreases after directing Q1 reservations below quotes
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Indexes: Dow up 0.15%, S&P 500 down 0.08%, Nasdaq down 0.34%
(Updates with afternoon prices)
By Shashwat Chauhan and Sukriti Gupta
Feb 5 (Reuters) -
The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq slipped on Wednesday, with Alphabet the most significant drag after the tech giant's dour cloud revenue and significant financial investments into expert system disappointed investors, while a multitude of incomes added to the volatility.
Google-parent Alphabet dropped 8.2% after publishing downbeat cloud revenue growth and earmarking a higher-than-expected $75 billion for its AI buildout this year.
"The market has some evidence to recommend that there are other companies that perhaps doing it less expensive, much better, quicker, quicker," said Dave Grecsek, managing director in preparation method and research at Aspiriant.
"So what is the knowledge of continuing to maintain high capex?"
AI-related stocks were rocked last week following the soaring appeal of a low-cost Chinese expert system design developed by startup
DeepSeek
. Nvidia, among the companies that was the worst hit, was up 3.8% on the day.
Advanced Micro Devices, meanwhile, lost 8.9% after CEO Lisa Su said the company's current-quarter information center sales - a proxy for its AI profits - would fall about 7% from the previous quarter.
On the data front, U.S. services sector activity unexpectedly slowed in January amid cooling need, helping curb price growth, a reading from the Institute for Supply Management revealed.
Private payrolls rose by 183,000 jobs last month, compared to an estimated 150,000 boost, per financial experts surveyed by Reuters. The necessary January nonfarm payrolls report is anticipated to be released on Friday.
Shares of Apple alleviated 1.2% as Bloomberg News reported that China's antitrust regulator was preparing for a possible investigation of the iPhone maker.
At 11:33 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 65.83 points, or 0.15%, to 44,621.87, the S&P 500 lost 4.37 points, or archmageriseswiki.com 0.08%, to 6,033.51 and the Nasdaq Composite lost 70.17 points, or 0.34%, to 19,586.61.
Eight of the 11 S&P 500 sectors traded higher, though communication services' over 3% fall obscured gains.
Uber Technologies dropped 7.2% after the ride-hailing company forecast current-quarter reservations below quotes.
Fiserv advanced 7.1% as the payments firm beat quotes for earnings, assisted by strong demand in its banking and payments processing system.
Markets likewise searched for developments on the tariffs front after U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday he remained in no hurry to speak to Chinese President Xi Jinping to try to pacify a brand-new trade war in between the countries.
Richmond Fed president Thomas Barkin said the Fed was still leaning towards more rate cuts this year, but flagged uncertainty around the impact of new tariffs, immigration, policies and other Trump administration initiatives.
Among leading movers, FMC Corp plunged 33.6% after the agrichemicals producer forecast first-quarter income listed below price quotes.
Johnson Controls jumped 11.1% as the structure solutions company named Joakim Weidemanis as ceo and raised its 2025 earnings forecast.
Advancing problems surpassed decliners by a 2.03-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and by a 1.6-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
The S&P 500 posted 27 new 52-week highs and 12 new lows, while the Nasdaq Composite taped 81 brand-new highs and 69 new lows.
(Reporting by Shashwat Chauhan and Sukriti Gupta in Bengaluru
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US STOCKS S & P 500, Nasdaq Fall As Earnings Season Gathers Speed
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