The Nasdaq Composite posted its fifth consecutive losing session Friday as investors rotated out of key technology stocks and into more defensive areas of the market. The tech-heavy index dropped 0.24% to close at 25,297.62, while the S&P 500 ticked down 0.05% to 7,354.02. The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 44.51 points, or 0.09%, to end at 51,876.11. The S&P 500 slid nearly 2% on the week, while the Nasdaq fell 4.6% in the period. The Dow outperformed, rising 0.6% week to date.
Chip stocks were weaker after a New York Times report that OpenAI is considering delaying its IPO to next year because of SpaceX's poor performance following its debut and overall volatility in AI-related shares. The report raised concerns about "sustainability of their infrastructure spending given the delay in funding from the capital markets," wrote JPMorgan traders in a note.
Shares of Micron Technology declined more than 6%, while Advanced Micro Devices lost 2%. Shares of Intel shed more than 3%. The sell-off was particularly severe in Asia. SoftBank Group, which is a key backer of OpenAI, led losses across the region on Friday, plunging more than 12%.
Beyond healthcare, the consumer staples, financials, and utilities sectors were also winners of the day. Consumer staples advanced nearly 1%, while financials and utilities gained 0.8% and 0.4%, respectively.
Better-than-expected consumer sentiment data, along with an improved inflation outlook, lent support to the market Friday. That's even as Minneapolis Federal Reserve President Neel Kashkari said he now expects that one interest rate hike will be necessary this year as a result of rising inflation linked to the conflict in the Middle East.
