World stock indexes mostly down, yen flat

MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe dropped 5.80 points, or 0.72%, to 796.78 and the STOXX 600 index declined 0.72%

World stock indexes mostly dropped in choppy trading Thursday, adding to losses after a tech-led selloff in the previous session, while the Japanese yen drifted near flat after hitting a 2-1/2 month high against the U.S. dollar.

U.S. megacap stocks were mostly in positive territory throughout afternoon trading before losing some ground by session's end. Tesla shares were 2% higher, while shares of Nvidia were 1.7% lower.

The small-cap Russell 2000 index gained 1.3%.

You could surmise there were some dip buyers coming in just because of how swiftly things moved yesterday, according to Chad Oviatt, director of investment management at Huntington Private Bank.

Small caps are winning this week relative to large caps, he added. When you get a GDP report that's better than expected, that helps to support the narrative of a potential soft landing.

Data showed the U.S. economy grew faster than expected in the second quarter amid solid gains in consumer spending and business investment, but inflation pressures subsided, leaving intact expectations of a September interest rate reduction from the Fed.

The Federal Reserve is scheduled to hold its next policy meeting at the end of July. Markets see only a slight chance for a rate cut of at least 25 bps at that meeting, but are fully pricing in a September cut, as per CME's FedWatch Tool.

Much focus remains on earnings, especially reports this week from top U.S. tech-related companies. Shares of IBM climbed 4.3% on Thursday after it reported upbeat revenue results late Wednesday.

The DJIA gained 81.20 points, or 0.20%, to 39,935.07, the S&P 500 dropped 27.91 points, or 0.51%, to 5,399.22 and the Nasdaq Composite declined 160.69 points, or 0.93%, to 17,181.72.

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq on Wednesday suffered their biggest daily percentage declines since late 2022 in the wake of lacklustre quarterly reports from Alphabet and Tesla.

Investors have been evaluating what happens next in markets following the decline in the glitzy megacaps.

MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe dropped 5.80 points, or 0.72%, to 796.78. The STOXX 600 index declined 0.72%.

The dollar index added 0.01% at 104.39. Against the Japanese yen, the dollar was near flat at 153.91.