Megacaps Meta Platforms, Microsoft Corp, Alphabet Inc, owner of Google, Apple Inc, Amazon.com and Tesla Inc lost between 1.2% and 4.7% in pre-market exchanges.
Chipmakers Intel Corp, Advanced Micro Devices and Nvidia Corp fell 0.9% 2.8%.
The heavily tech-heavy Nasdaq index fell more than 3% on Wednesday after data showed US consumer prices slowed in April but are expected to remain elevated for some time. which will keep the Federal Reserve’s foot on the brakes to cool demand.
A Labor Department report on Thursday showed the producer price index (PPI) for final demand rose 0.5% in April, compared with a 1.6% rise in March. Economists had forecast a 0.5% rise in the PPI for the month.
“What we’re seeing is that inflation is starting to slow down, but the speed hasn’t been as fast as people were hoping for. So I think the markets are still scared of that,” Gene Goldman said. , Chief Investment Officer at Cetera Investment Management.
“There’s really a lot of uncertainty around the Fed right now. If they’re too aggressive, it hurts economic growth, but (if) they’re too conservative, higher inflation hurts consumption, which hurts also growth.
Growth stocks, which have led the stock market rally since pandemic lows in 2020, have been hardest hit this year, as their yields and valuations are priced deeper when rates rise.
The S&P 500 growth index has fallen 25.6% since the start of the year, a much larger drop than the 8.4% decline of its value counterpart, which houses economically sensitive sectors such as banks. , energy and industry.
Traders estimate a 61% chance of a 75 basis point Fed hike in June.
As of 8:38 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis were down 159 points, or 0.5%, S&P 500 e-minis were down 31.75 points, or 0.81%, and Nasdaq 100 minis were down 183.75 points, or 1.54%.
Among other stocks, Walt Disney Co slid 5.5% after second-quarter revenue and profit fell short of estimates and the entertainment giant warned that supply chain disruptions and rising wages could weigh on finances.
Vegetable protein maker Beyond Meat Inc fell 24.1% and was on course to open below its IPO price due to rising quarterly losses.
Tapestry climbed 6.7% after the owner of Kate Spade reported upbeat third-quarter results, helped by higher prices and strength in its North American market. (Reporting by Devik Jain and Amruta Khandekar Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)