US Stock Market Faces Significant Decline Amid Weak Economic Data

On Friday, the US stock market had a steep downturn; the three main indices ended the day more than 1.5% lower. The Dow Jones industrial average was down almost 1,000 points at intraday lows, while the S&P 500 and tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite were nearly 5% over the period. The sell-off began on Thursday amid weak data points, including jobless claims and manufacturing data. Amazon missed its second-quarter sales forecast and issued light guidance for the third quarter, while Intel announced plans to cut 15,000 workers and gave a dismal growth forecast. The sell-off seems to signal a shift in how investors interpret weak economic data, with pressure on the Federal Reserve and questions about whether the Fed miscalculated its path of rate cuts.