On Wednesday, the main indexes on Wall Street were mixed, as Alphabet slipped and as indications of moderating inflation kept hopes alive that the U.S. Federal Reserve would start its rate-cutting cycle next month.
The google -parent fell 3.6% after the media reported that the U.S. Department of Justice was considering options that included breaking up the online search engine.
The NASDAQ was weighed down by losses in Alphabet and this pulled the communication services sector 1.3% lower, the most among the 11 major sectors on the S&P 500.
Earlier this month a rebound in technology and megacap stocks helped markets recover most of their losses from a market rout globally that was in part caused by data that showed a surge in July’s unemployment rate in the U.S.
Data showed that in July U.S. consumer prices rose slightly and the increase in annual inflation slowed to lower than 3% for the first time since 2021.
On Tuesday both the NASDAQ and the S&P 500 recorded their 4th consecutive session of gains after lower-than-expected producer prices data.
The NASDAQ Composite lost 29.61 points, or 0.19%, to 17,155.69, the S&P 500 gained 6.16 points, or 0.11%, to 5,440.63 and the dow jones Industrial Average rose 92.75 points, or 0.23%, to 39,858.60.