New York, October 16 — U.S. stock indexes steadied on Thursday, following a volatile session marked by global AI stock sell-offs and mixed economic signals. The S&P 500 rose 0.3%, or 25.12 points, to close at 7,744.06, a move closer to its all-time high set the previous week. Marsh & McLennan, Kimberly-Clark, and Bank of New York Mellon led the rebound with robust earnings reports and optimistic outlooks.
Meanwhile, Nvidia, the AI chipmaker, fell as much as 3.8% in morning trading before paring losses to close down 1.8%. Earlier in the day, markets had been shaken by a global sell-off in AI stocks that originated on Wall Street the previous day and spread to Asia.
South Korea’s Kospi index dropped 7.6%, and Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 4.9%. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.’s U.S.-listed stock dropped as much as 5.3% intraday but finished down 1.8% after reporting quarterly profits above expectations and forecasting continued strong demand through the end of 2026. CoreWeave, a cloud-based AI computing provider, swung from a morning low of 9.5% down to a final gain of 5.9% after a 15.5% drop the prior day.
Despite another report indicating worsening U.S. inflation, Treasury yields fell during the session, indicating investor demand for government bonds. The broader market’s ability to stabilize was attributed to easing AI stock losses later in the day and resilient corporate earnings.
S&P 500 Stocks
Marsh & McLennan, a leading global professional services firm, rose 4.6% after reporting better-than-anticipated summer profits. Kimberly-Clark, a consumer goods company, climbed 4.7% on upbeat revenue and profit guidance. Bank of New York Mellon, a financial services company, increased 3.2% following a robust earnings report and comments from CEO Robin Vince about regional strength.
Nvidia, the AI chipmaker and Wall Street’s most valuable company, fell as much as 3.8% in morning trading before paring losses to close down 1.8%. The rebound on Thursday came after a day of volatility, with markets shaken by a global sell-off in AI stocks that originated on Wall Street the previous day and spread to Asia.
Looking forward, economists and investors will be watching for further signs of market stability and continued strong corporate earnings. The S&P 500’s performance will remain a key indicator of the market’s health and direction.
