NEW YORK (AP) — The huge rally in U.S. stocks lost momentum Thursday as Wall Street counted down to a major jobs report due Friday. The crypto market was more active and bitcoin briefly hit a record high above $103,000 before retreating.
The S&P 500 slipped 0.2% from the all-time high it hit the day before, its 56th of the year so far, taking a small bite out of what is shaping up to be one of its best years of the millennium. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 248 points, or 0.6%, while the Nasdaq composite slipped 0.2% from its own record set the day before.
Bitcoin surpassed $100,000 for the first time the night before, after President-elect Donald Trump chose Paul Atkins, considered a crypto advocate, as his nominee to head the Securities and Exchange Commission. The cryptocurrency rose significantly from below $70,000 on Election Day, but fell back toward $99,000 on Thursday, according to CoinDesk.
Bitcoin’s sharp swings are nothing new, and they have taken the shares of companies involved in the crypto world in a similar move. After rising 9% in early trading, MicroStrategy, a company that raised cash solely to buy bitcoin, posted a 4.8% loss. Crypto exchange Coinbase Global fell 3.1% after also erasing a big early gain.
Elsewhere on Wall Street, airline stocks helped lead the way following the latest upward revisions to carriers’ financial forecasts.
American Airlines Group soared 16.8% after saying it had more revenue than it had forecast in the final three months of 2024, and would likely make a profit more important than he had previously anticipated. The airline also chose Citi as its exclusive partner for mileage credit cards in its loyalty program. This should allow its cash flow from co-branded credit cards and other partners to grow by about 10% annually.
Southwest Airlines rose 2% after reporting stronger-than-expected demand from leisure travelers. It also raised its revenue forecast for the holiday travel season.
On the losing side of Wall Street, Synposys fell 12.4%. The semiconductor industry supplier reported a profit for the latest quarter that beat analysts’ forecasts, but also warned of “ongoing macroeconomic uncertainties” and gave revenue forecasts. for the current quarter which are below the estimates of some analysts.
American Eagle Outfitters fell even more, by 14.3%, after the retailer said it was preparing for “potential turmoil” outside of peak sales periods. This is reminiscent of a warning from Foot Locker earlier in the week and has raised more concerns about the resilience of US shoppers.
