Tethered by consumer-slowdown fears… Financials slide in tandem on ‘AI onslaught’ [New York market briefing]

Major U.S. stock indexes ended mixed on concerns about an economic slowdown.

On the 10th (local time) at the New York Stock Exchange, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 52.27 points (0.1%) from the previous session to close at 50,188.14.

The Standard & Poor’s (S&P) 500 fell 23.01 points (0.33%) to 6,941.81, while the Nasdaq Composite slid 136.20 points (0.59%) to 23,102.47.

The Dow trimmed some of its gains after setting fresh record highs both intraday and at the close.

Risk appetite failed to rebound as economic data fell short of expectations.

According to the U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. retail sales in December last year were flat month on month (0%). The consensus forecast had called for a 0.4% increase.

Core retail sales, used to calculate personal consumption expenditures (PCE) in gross domestic product (GDP), also fell 0.1% from the prior month.

The weaker consumption data are seen as stoking worries about an economic slowdown, as softer spending indicators typically tend to feed through to weaker employment.

Against that backdrop, big-box retailers Costco and Walmart fell 2.64% and 1.8%, respectively, on the day.

Major tech companies also declined across the board except Tesla. Alphabet’s market capitalization slipped back below $4 trillion amid concerns over large-scale AI investment.

Financial stocks also weakened on fears that the emergence of AI agents could encroach on parts of financial services. Charles Schwab plunged 7.4% and LPL Financial tumbled 8.3%, while Morgan Stanley and JPMorgan Chase also fell around 2%.

Reporter Noh Jeong-dong, Hankyung.com dong2@hankyung.com