Nasdaq Composite, Dow Jones fall as weak earnings weigh on sentiment

Market nerves have been frayed since April 2, when former President Donald Trump proposed a series of reciprocal tariffs that spurred fears of a renewed trade war and inflationary pressures.

U.S. stocks wavered on Thursday, the final trading day of the holiday-shortened week, as continued pressure on heavyweight tech names and a sharp drop in UnitedHealth kept investor sentiment cautious.

The S&P 500 was last up 0.2 percent, after fluctuating between gains and losses for much of the session. The Nasdaq Composite slipped 0.35 percent, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 507 points, or 1.3 percent, weighed down by a steep 22 percent decline in UnitedHealth following an earnings miss.

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Nvidia extended its losses, dropping more than 4 percent after sliding nearly 7 percent a day earlier. The chipmaker recently disclosed a $5.5 billion charge tied to export curbs on its H20 GPUs to China and other restricted regions, triggering a selloff in AI-related names.

However, Eli Lilly made headlines after it surged 14 percent on the back of encouraging trial results for its experimental weight-loss pill, while Taiwan Semiconductor rose around 1 percent after posting better-than-expected quarterly earnings.

Still, the major indexes are on course to end the week lower, with markets set to remain shut on Friday for Good Friday. The S&P 500 is down more than 1 percent so far this week, while the Dow and Nasdaq have lost nearly 3 percent each.

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Market nerves have been frayed since April 2, when former President Donald Trump proposed a series of reciprocal tariffs that spurred fears of a renewed trade war and inflationary pressures. While Trump later softened his stance, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Wednesday cautioned that the tariffs could push prices higher and complicate the central bank’s policy goals. Powell noted the Fed may face a scenario where its twin objectives—maximum employment and price stability—pull in opposite directions.

Since that announcement, the S&P 500 has lost more than 6 ppercent, with the Dow and Nasdaq down over 7 percent apiece, underscoring investors’ growing unease over the global economic outlook.

European markets trimmed early losses to end Thursday’s session on a subdued note, after the European Central Bank announced a widely expected interest rate cut.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 slipped 0.1 percent by the close, recovering most of its intraday decline. Regionally, the UK’s FTSE 100 was flat, while Germany’s DAX and France’s CAC 40 each dropped 0.5 percent.

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