Major US stock indexes closed at record highs on Wednesday, with gains in healthcare and consumer stocks lifting Wall Street even as the artificial intelligence (AI)-driven rally showed signs of cooling.
The DJI rose 182.60 points, or 0.36%, to close at a record 50,644.28, while the SPX edged up 0.02% to 7,520.36 and the IXIC gained 0.07% to 26,674.74, with both indexes also ending at fresh all-time highs.
Investors paused after weeks of strong gains fuelled by AI-related optimism, while also closely monitoring developments in negotiations involving the US and Iran over the Strait of Hormuz and regional tensions in West Asia.
Consumer and healthcare counters led gains on Wall Street, with Procter & Gamble climbing 3.2% and UnitedHealth Group rising 1.9%.
Technology and semiconductor stocks, however, retreated after a strong rally earlier this week. NVIDIA slipped 1%, while Qualcomm fell 6% and Marvell Technology dropped 4.6%.
The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index also declined 1.4% after hitting a record high previously.
Banking shares came under pressure after JPMorgan Chase fell 2.4%, following comments by chief executive officer Jamie Dimon that annual expenses could exceed earlier estimates by US$1 billion.
Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs raised its year-end target for the S&P 500 to 8,000 from 7,600, citing resilient corporate earnings growth.
Investors are now awaiting the release of the US Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) index, the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge, for further clues on the direction of interest rates and monetary policy.
