Market

October 8, U.S. stocks opened on the back foot as Treasury yields crept higher and investors eyed fresh central-bank commentary. The Dow Jones slipped 0.35% to 51,001, the S&P 500 fell 0.36% to 7,773, and the Nasdaq Composite lost 0.49% to 27,403, with risk appetite subdued across the board.

Decliners set the tone at the open. Direxion Daily Semiconductors Bull 3x Shares falls 5.7% as traders unwind leveraged chip bets amid weakness in the sector. Advanced Micro Devices drops 1.1% and NVIDIA sheds 1.3% after a slide in semiconductor futures. Tesla Motors retreats 1.1% following another round of price cuts in key markets. Micron Technology eases 1.0% after a cautious industry outlook. Alphabet bucks the trend, rising 1.2% on new AI chip announcements, while Palantir Technologies Inc. adds 2.0% on a fresh government contract win.

Broader pressure persists in tech hardware: Silicon Motion Technology slides 2.4%, Western Digital down 1.4%, Broadcom off 1.5%, ProShares UltraPro QQQ sinks 1.7%, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing weakens 0.9%. Energy names also retreat, with Vistra Energy Corp. down 1.6%, while Universe Pharmaceuticals Inc. gains 2.7% and Direxion Daily Semiconductors Bear 3x Shares rallies 5.6% as traders seek downside protection.

News

Federal Reserve signals higher-for-longer stance. Chair Powell said additional evidence of disinflation is needed before easing policy, dampening hopes for rate cuts and weighing on equities.

Labor Department reports unexpected rise in weekly jobless claims. Initial filings climbed for a second week, suggesting some softening in the labor market and reinforcing recession concerns.

NVIDIA faces fresh EU antitrust review of Arm licensing practices. Regulators opened a preliminary probe into whether NVIDIA limits rivals’ chip access, sending the stock lower and raising uncertainty over its data-center roadmap.

Tesla Motors cuts Model Y prices in North America. The third reduction this quarter stokes demand worries and pressures margins ahead of the EV maker’s upcoming earnings release.

Palantir Technologies Inc. wins $250 million U.S. defense AI contract. The multiyear award expands the company’s battlefield analytics footprint and underpins its commercial AI growth narrative.

Micron Technology issues cautious guidance at investor conference. Management flagged lingering memory-chip oversupply, prompting analysts to trim estimates and sending shares lower.

Alphabet unveils next-generation Tensor processing units. The in-house chips promise faster AI training for Google Cloud clients and intensify competition with NVIDIA and Advanced Micro Devices.

Broadcom says VMware deal closing may slip into next quarter. Extended regulatory reviews in key overseas markets could delay cost-synergy realization and pressured the stock in early trade.

Amazon.com commits $5 billion to expand U.S. AI data-center capacity. The investment aims to meet surging cloud demand and bolster the company’s generative-AI offerings.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing warns of possible capex pullback. Management cited a slower recovery in handset demand, amplifying concerns over global semiconductor spending.