Time: 2024-07-19
US stocks were volatile on Friday as concerns about a global IT outage subsided , giving Wall Street hope for a rebound after a sell - off that ended the Dow 's winning streak and continued to impact the tech sector . The Dow Jones Industrial Average experienced a slight decline of 0.2 % , following a more significant drop of over 1 % . The S&P 500 remained close to unchanged , while the Nasdaq Composite showed a slight increase in value.
Investors have been grappling with weekly losses due to fluctuations in the tech sector , particularly among AI - focused chip stocks . There has been a shift away from tech giants that have been driving the recent market surge , with some investors favoring small - cap stocks that are believed to benefit more from potential interest rate cuts.
Early on , market participants were assessing the implications of a major computer systems failure that disrupted global operations , affecting various industries including airlines , banks , telecoms , and media companies . However , concerns eased after CrowdStrike , a cybersecurity firm , announced that a fix had been implemented to address the issue caused by a faulty update affecting Microsoft - based systems.
CrowdStrike shares initially plummeted by as much as 20 % during the outage but recovered slightly to around a 12 % loss at the market open . Microsoft , which was also dealing with problems related to its Azure cloud services , saw a slight decline in its stock price but was on a path to recovery.
In a separate development , Donald Trump , a candidate for the Republican presidential nomination , made a statement during his speech indicating his intention to eliminate the electric vehicle mandate on his first day in office . This announcement has sparked discussions in the market about the potential impact of Trump 's policies on various assets , a concept known as the " Trump trade . "
Despite the widespread IT outage causing disruptions globally , major financial markets like the New York Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq managed to remain operational . Both exchanges reported that trading activities were unaffected , even as CrowdStrike - related issues persisted across other industries . The Nasdaq , known for its focus on tech stocks , reassured investors that its European and US markets were functioning normally despite the challenges posed by the update from CrowdStrike.
However , not all financial institutions were able to escape the effects of the IT outage . Russell US Indexes , including the popular Russell 2000 small - cap gauge , experienced difficulties in calculating values after the market opened . This technical issue led to disruptions in real - time platforms and data access for clients . As a result , FTSE Russell , the index provider , acknowledged the problem and stated that their teams were actively working to resolve the issue promptly.
In light of the ongoing challenges caused by the failure in computer systems , cybersecurity experts like Gregory Falco from Cornell University emphasized the significance of the situation . Falco highlighted the unprecedented scale and consequences of the failure , which not only impacted businesses directly but also raised concerns for global insurance providers involved in ensuring business continuity . Despite the setbacks faced by the Russell indexes in updating digital platforms , calculations for various indexes continued without interruption.
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