US close: Stocks mixed as Dow powers ahead, investors trim AI exposure

(Sharecast News) - Major indices closed mostly higher on Thursday, with the blue-chip index notching a fresh record close as market participants remained locked in on Middle East developments and looked to limit their exposure to artificial intelligence stocks .

At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 1.73% at 51,561.93, while the S&P 500 advanced 0.41% to 7,584.31 and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 0.09% softer at 26,830.96.

The Dow closed 874.86 points higher on Thursday, more than reversing losses recorded in the previous session.

Oil prices traded lower early on Thursday, with West Texas Intermediate down 3.15% at $93.00 a barrel and Brent crude 2.70% softer at $95.17 a barrel, after pushing higher in the previous session as hostilities between the US and Iran intensified. Yesterday's moves came after Tehran struck Kuwait International Airport, following a US Central Command statement a day earlier that American forces had intercepted multiple Iranian ballistic missiles and drones and carried out what it described as "selfdefence" strikes on Qeshm Island in the Persian Gulf.

After the close, Donald Trump said he would meet Iran's new supreme leader "if it was to make a deal".

In the corporate space, chipmaker Broadcom tumbled in afterhours trading on Wednesday after it delivered a mixed set of quarterly numbers and issued an AI sales outlook that fell short of market hopes. Broadcom posted revenue of $22.19bn for the quarter, a touch ahead of the $22.13bn expected, while earnings per share came in at $2.44 against forecasts of $2.39. However, market participants had been looking for a stronger topline beat given the scale of recent AIrelated demand, leaving some investors underwhelmed by the modest outperformance.

UnitedHealth helped lift the Dow Jones, as did JPMorgan Chase and Walmart, as market participants took steps to rotate out of the sector following Broadcom's disappointing guidance and pare exposure to stocks with ties to AI.

On the macro front, US employers announced 97,006 job cuts in May, according to Challenger, Gray & Christmas, up from 83,387 in April for the highest monthly total since January. It also marked the third consecutive monthly increase and the largest May figure since 2020, with artificial intelligence cited as the leading cause of layoffs for a third straight month. The tech sector accounted for 38,242 cuts, its biggest monthly tally since August 2024, while transportation cut 6,909 jobs, services made 6,288 layoffs, and fintech shed 5,731 jobs.

Elsewhere, Americans lined up for unemployment benefits at an accelerated clip in the week ended 30 May, according to the Department of Labor, hitting the highest initial claim count since February. Initial jobless claims rose by by 13,000 to 225,000, well ahead of market expectations for a much smaller 1,000 increase to 213,000. Elsewhere, continuing claims slipped by 8,000 to 1.77m, while the four-week moving average, which aims to strip out week-to-week volatility, increased by 6,500 to 214,750. The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was unchanged at 1.2%.

Finally, US worker productivity slowed more sharply than first reported in Q1, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, though the broader trend remained firm. Nonfarm business productivity rose at an annualised clip of 0.3%, down from the initial estimate of 0.8% and the weakest reading since early 2025. The measure, which tracks hourly output per worker, still sits on a solid upward trend, with economists expecting to see further gains as companies roll out AI tools across a wider range of roles. Unit labor costs, on the other hand, increased at a 1.8% rate last quarter - a downward revision from the 2.3% pace reported in May.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com

Dow Jones - Risers

Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $345.60 5.22%

Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $396.47 5.16%

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $1,092.61 4.96%

Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $120.26 4.85%

American Express Co. (AXP) $312.53 3.98%

JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $310.89 3.34%

Boeing Co. (BA) $217.42 3.25%

Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $130.00 2.75%

Visa Inc. (V) $320.18 2.49%

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $228.17 2.21%

Dow Jones - Fallers

Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $44.87 -3.82%

Intel Corp. (INTC) $111.78 -3.44%

Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $76.82 -2.46%

Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $428.05 -1.85%

Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) $34.79 -1.72%

Apple Inc. (AAPL) $311.23 -1.55%

International Business Machines Corporation (CDI) (IBM) $301.77 -1.26%

Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $188.75 -0.98%

Home Depot Inc. (HD) $309.95 -0.96%

Chevron Corp. (CVX) $188.35 -0.72%

S&P 500 - Risers

Incyte Corp. (INCY) $101.24 8.86%

Affiliated Mgrs Group (AMG) $334.82 7.45%

Robert Half Inc. (RHI) $31.60 6.90%

Humana Inc. (HUM) $349.80 6.80%

American Tower Corp (Reit) (AMT) $193.91 6.40%

Sl Green Realty Corp. (SLG) $47.12 5.86%

Crown Castle International (CCI) $93.79 5.83%

Macy's Inc. (M) $23.03 5.64%

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd (NCLH) $19.13 5.40%

Centene Corp. (CNC) $62.70 5.29%

S&P 500 - Fallers

Apartment Investment & Management Co. (AIV) $3.06 -28.50%

PVH Corp. (PVH) $78.16 -20.24%

Broadcom Inc. (AVGO) $418.91 -13.38%

Coterra Energy Inc. (CTRA) $32.56 -8.62%

Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $996.00 -5.35%

Charter Communications Inc. (CHTR) $129.05 -5.08%

Aptiv PLC (APTV) $72.92 -5.08%

Arista Networks Inc. (ANET) $166.01 -4.79%

Comcast Corp. (CMCSA) $23.33 -4.60%

Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $44.87 -3.82%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Incyte Corp. (INCY) $101.24 8.86%

Biomarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (BMRN) $56.47 5.97%

Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $345.60 5.22%

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (VRTX) $441.74 4.81%

Biogen Inc (BIIB) $196.45 4.78%

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. (REGN) $628.73 4.74%

Intuitive Surgical Inc. (ISRG) $418.82 4.51%

Cintas Corp. (CTAS) $179.96 4.28%

Ross Stores Inc. (ROST) $233.06 3.86%

PACCAR Inc. (PCAR) $118.07 3.74%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Qvc Group Inc Series A (QVCGA) $0.34 -13.49%

Broadcom Inc. (AVGO) $418.91 -13.38%

Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $996.00 -5.35%

Charter Communications Inc. (CHTR) $129.05 -5.08%

Comcast Corp. (CMCSA) $23.33 -4.60%

T-Mobile Us, Inc. (TMUS) $177.02 -3.64%

Intuit Inc. (INTU) $301.98 -3.56%

Intel Corp. (INTC) $111.78 -3.44%

Liberty Global plc Series C (LBTYK) $11.24 -3.10%

Liberty Global plc Series A (LBTYA) $11.63 -3.00%