FX.co ★ US Stock Market Closes Lower Following CPI Report

US equity indices finished lower on Tuesday as hotter-than-expected inflation data pressured both stocks and bonds, following a series of hawkish comments from Federal Reserve officials. The S&P 500 fell 0.4%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined by 158 points, and the Nasdaq Composite lost 0.6%. A stronger-than-anticipated CPI print reinforced expectations of a 25 bp rate increase in December, with money markets assigning some probability to an even larger move and additional tightening in 2025.

In primary markets, Anthropic is expected to begin trading as soon as next week, aiming to raise up to $90 billion at a fully diluted valuation of about $1.4 trillion. The deal comes amid robust demand for AI-related assets, though mounting concerns about elevated capital expenditure have fueled debate over the durability of the sector’s current investment cycle.

Semiconductor stocks were broadly weaker: Nvidia dropped 5.5%, extending the prior session’s decline, while Micron lost 1.1%. Large cloud and hyperscale names also retreated, with Microsoft down 2.2% and Oracle off 1.5%.