US stocks close Thursday in red

By Gokhan Ergocun

ISTANBUL (AA) - The New York stock market closed lower, driven by concerns regarding infrastructure spending on artificial intelligence (AI).

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 132.54 points, or 0.25%, to 52,342.56.

The S&P 500 fell 0.3%, or 23.59 points, to 7,720.39, while the Nasdaq Composite decreased 1.38%, or 365.13 points, to close at 26,184.72.

The Volatility Index (VIX), often referred to as the market's "fear index," rose 1.01% to 17.08.

Equity markets saw a negative trend as investors evaluated macroeconomic data and corporate earnings reports, following Fed's decision on Wednesday to keep its policy interest rate unchanged.

Alphabet, the parent company of Google—which released its earnings report after the markets closed yesterday—saw its third-quarter profit fall by 25%, coming in below market expectations.

Alphabet’s financial results fueled concerns that costs related to AI are rising rapidly, causing the company’s shares to slide by 12.6%.

This decline marked the largest single-day post-earnings drop in Alphabet’s history, with the company’s market capitalization shrinking by approximately $500 billion.

Analysts noted that while Google’s high-margin search business provides significant funding for its AI infrastructure investments, investors are concerned that AI-powered chatbot tools are increasingly capturing a larger share of Google’s search volume.

Meanwhile, Microsoft reported profit and revenue figures that exceeded expectations, while its capital expenditures came in below forecasts.

Additionally, reports in the US press indicated that the company plans to raise approximately $25 billion through a bond sale; Microsoft shares ended the day flat.

Meanwhile, shares of Amazon—which was expected to release its financial results after the market closed—fell by 4.3%, while Intel shares declined by 3.6%.

Analysts noted that the focus will be on whether the heavy investments these tech giants have made in AI infrastructure are translating into sustained revenue growth.

Regarding macroeconomic data, the US economy grew by 3.4% in the third quarter of this year, exceeding expectations.

Personal consumption expenditures in the country rose by 0.5% month-over-month in September, coming in below market expectations.

The number of Americans filing initial claims for unemployment benefits fell to 194,000 for the week ending October 24, marking the lowest level since mid-July.

- European stocks close higher

European stock markets ended the day with positive figures, excluding Spain, as the pan-European Stoxx Europe 600 index rose 0.77% to 649.11 points.

Britain’s FTSE 100 rose 0.26% to 10,722.07, Germany’s DAX 40 increased 1.31% to 26,039.68, and France’s CAC 40 gained 1.05% to 7,970.

Italy’s FTSE MIB went up 0.36% to close at 50,002.36, while Spain's IBEX 35 fell 0.14% to close at 18,857.60.

Gökhan Ergöçün