Wall Street Indexes Mixed as Tech Stocks Decline

Stocks wavered in afternoon trading on Wall Street as big technology stocks slipped and weighed on the broader market. The S&P 500 fell 0.1 per cent. The Dow Jones rose 165 points, or 0.3 per cent, in mid-afternoon trade. The Nasdaq composite fell 0.4 per cent.

The Australian sharemarket is set to decline, with futures at 4.55am AEST pointing to a fall of 33 points, or 0.4 per cent, at the open. The ASX edged up 0.2 per cent on Wednesday. The Australian dollar was trading at US68.84¢.

Street’s technology stocks started the day higher, helping to support the market’s broader gains amid easing pressure from falling bond yields and lower oil prices. But the influential tech sector is now losing ground for a third consecutive day. Big Tech companies, especially those focused on artificial intelligence, have pricey values that give them more sway over the market’s broader direction.

Nvidia fell 1.2 per cent, following a 4.1 per cent slump on Tuesday. Micron Technology, which reports its latest results later on Wednesday, fell 3.6 per cent following its 13.2 per cent plunge on Tuesday. Microsoft fell 0.9 per cent. Google’s parent company Alphabet rose 0.8 per cent.

The company is replacing Verizon in the Dow on Monday. Alphabet will become the fifth Magnificent 7 company to join the index. The others are Apple, Amazon, Microsoft and Nvidia.

Oil prices continued slipping as the US and Iran negotiate a possible end to their war. Brent crude, the international standard, fell 3.6 per cent to $US74.02 a barrel. US crude prices fell 3.8 per cent to $US70.46 a barrel. Oil companies had some of the biggest losses.

Exxon Mobil fell 2.3 per cent and Chevron lost 2.4 per cent. Some of the bigger winners on Wall Street included homebuilders following approval of legislation beneficial to the industry. KB Home surged 16.4 per cent and D.R. Horton jumped 6.5 per cent.