Stocks fell on Wednesday as investors worried about persistent inflation after the latest release of minutes from the Federal Reserve’s most recent meeting. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 201.95 points, the S&P 500 fell 0.27%, and the Nasdaq Composite slipped 0.18%. However, things were looking up on Thursday morning as futures tied to all three indexes were higher, with Nasdaq-100 futures climbing 0.8% as Wall Street rode the momentum from market bellwether Nvidia.
Nvidia saw its shares rally and top $1,000 for the first time in extended trading after reporting fiscal first-quarter results that beat analyst estimates. The chipmaker reported a 262% jump in sales and announced a 10-for-1 stock split. Its revenue more than tripled for the quarter, and its data center business grew by over 400% from a year earlier. Nvidia’s strong results suggest strong demand for its artificial intelligence chips, reflecting the overall strength of the AI rally.
Federal Reserve officials expressed growing concern about their progress on inflation in the minutes from the April 30-May 1 meeting, indicating a lack of confidence in cutting interest rates due to a lack of progress toward the committee’s 2% inflation target. The benchmark short-term borrowing rate remains within the 5.25%-5.5% range where it has been since July 2023. Fed Governor Christopher Waller stated he needs to see “several months” of progress before voting to cut rates.
Amazon is upgrading its voice assistant Alexa with generative artificial intelligence in an effort to make it more conversational. This upgrade, set to come this year, will include a monthly subscription fee and will not be included in Amazon Prime subscriptions. The move positions Amazon to better compete with companies like Google and OpenAI, which have launched AI-powered chatbots and similar AI-powered voice features.
General Motors has launched an all-electric version of its iconic Chevrolet Equinox, part of the lineup for two decades. The crossover EV has gone on sale with higher-priced models starting at roughly $43,000 to $51,100, with an entry-level model expected to launch later this year starting at around $35,000. This move comes as demand for EVs has been slower than expected, testing GM’s new “Ultium” EV technologies and overall mass-market EV adoption.
Overall, investors should keep an eye on the market following the recent dip, the performance of Nvidia and other tech stocks, developments in inflation and interest rates from the Federal Reserve, advancements in artificial intelligence technology such as Amazon’s upgrade to Alexa, and the success of GM’s all-electric Chevrolet Equinox as indicators of broader market trends and investment opportunities.
