South Korea Financial Markets

Stocks wavered to a mixed close on Wall Street as losses for several tech giants including Microsoft weighed on the market. The S&P 500 fell 0.1% on Wednesday, even though more stocks rose than fell within the index. The Dow added 0.4%, and the Nasdaq composite fell 0.4%. Another decline in oil prices helped ease concerns about inflation. Brent crude dropped 3.8%, bringing it closer to where it was before the war with Iran started. Treasury yields fell in the bond market. Google parent Alphabet slipped. The company will replace Verizon in the Dow next week.

The U.S. stock market drifted to a mixed finish after several AI stocks veered back up the roller coaster, while Apple shares dropped after hiking prices on many of its products. The S&P 500 slipped less than 0.1% Thursday after swinging between gains and losses. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.1%, and the Nasdaq composite fell 0.5%. Micron Technology helped lead the market after the computer memory company reported much stronger profit and revenue for the latest quarter than analysts anticipated. Treasury yields eased in the bond market after a report said inflation is behaving pretty much as economists expected.