Wall Street’s nine-week winning streak ended with a thud on Friday, as red-hot technology stocks suffered their largest ​daily decline this year after a hot May jobs report fueled fears of a hawkish policy pivot from the U.S. Federal Reserve.

Selling was concentrated among chip stocks and other technology favorites that have surged higher in recent weeks as the Nasdaq Composite Index and S&P 500 rose repeatedly to fresh highs.

All three major U.S. stock indexes closed sharply lower, with ‌plunging chip stocks ⁠dragging the ⁠tech-laden Nasdaq down by its largest one-day percentage loss since last year.

The S&P 500 ended its nine-week run of Friday-to-Friday gains, its longest weekly winning streak since one that ended in December ​2023.

“After the record run we’ve seen the last nine weeks in equities, specifically tech and semiconductors, the dam just broke today,” said Ryan Detrick, chief market strategist ​at Carson Group in Omaha. “Obviously, the stronger-than-expected jobs report puts the Fed in a tough spot regarding any interest rate cut for the rest of the year. And the market is throwing a fit by hitting the big winners so far this year.”

Rising interest rates and the Iran war weighed on ​sentiment heading into the weekend, but many investors said they expected tech stocks to continue rallying.
“The market ⁠reaction today ‌was more driven by positioning rather than fundamentals,” said Ohsung Kwon, chief equity strategist at Wells Fargo. “The semiconductor sector was ​way overbought. That’s why we’re ​seeing the selloff. I don’t think it’s the end of the semi bull market.” The U.S. economy added 172,000 jobs ⁠in May, according to the Labor Department, more than double analyst expectations, while the unemployment rate ​held firm at 4.3%. The robust report was double-edged: it provided reassurance of U.S. economic health, but ​all but killed any hopes of an interest rate cut from the Fed in the near future.Financial markets are pricing in a growing likelihood of a rate hike at the conclusion of the Fed’s December meeting, according to CME’s FedWatch tool.

Fading hopes for a near-term resolution to the Middle East war and reopening the Strait of Hormuz are stirring fears that energy price pressures could morph into wider, systemic inflation. Iran reaffirmed its support for Hezbollah and demanded that Israel withdraw its troops from southern Lebanon, further complicating efforts to secure a near-term peace deal that would include the resumption of traffic through the ‌crucial strait. U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration has negotiated three truces, and while fighting has been greatly reduced, the two sides continue to trade airstrikes.

According to preliminary data, the S&P 500 lost 199.64 points, or 2.63%, to end at 7,384.67 points, ​while the Nasdaq Composite lost ​1,117.38 points, or 4.16%, to 25,713.58. The ⁠Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 684.53 points, or 1.33%, to 50,877.40.

Nvidia, the largest company by market value, fell sharply, as did smaller rivals Intel, Micron, AMD and Broadcom. Lululemon Athletica slumped after the athletic apparel maker cut its annual profit forecast and projected second-quarter earnings well below Wall Street estimates. Cooper Companies rose ​after the contact lens maker beat estimates for second-quarter results.

Cryptocurrency firms Coinbase and Strategy were pulled lower by bitcoin’s sharp drop. S&P Global said it would not change the eligibility requirements for its major indices, which effectively rules out a swift entry for Elon Musk’s SpaceX to the benchmark S&P 500 after it goes public in what would be the world’s biggest initial public offering.

S&P Dow Jones Indices will announce the results following its rebalancing after markets close. Chipmaker Marvell Technology, which boasts over $270 billion in valuation, is among the contenders to be added to the benchmark index.

Anne McElvoy and guests discuss the concentration, distribution and morality of wealth now and look back at An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations, published by the Scottish economist and philosopher Adam Smith in 1776, which gives an early account of what builds nations’ wealth and introduced concepts such as free markets, the division of labour, and productivity.

Our guests for this episode of BBC Radio 4’s Friday night ideas discussion programme are:

Vicky Pryce, economist and business consultant and co-author of Mismanaged Decline What Politicians Won’t Tell You About the Economy

Maha Rafi Atal, Adam Smith Senior Lecturer in Political Economy at the University of Glasgow and author of the forthcoming book When Companies Rule: Corporate Power from the East India Company to Silicon Valley. The University is holding a series of events to mark the 250th anniversary of the publication of The Wealth of Nations.

Dafydd Daniel, Lecturer in Divinity at the University of St Andrews

Allister Heath, business journalist

Hettie O’Brien, Guardian writer and author of The Asset Class: How Private Equity Turned Capitalism Against Itself

Producer: Eliane Glaser

You can hear another discussion about searching for economic solutions in the most recent episode of Start the Week, Radio 4’s Monday morning discussion programme where Tom Sutcliffe was joined by Mariana Mazzucato, Jeremy Hunt and Patrick Foulis.

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Harley-Davidson’s recent executive hires risk alienating Americans fed up with alleged wokeness from corporate icons like the motorcycle manufacturer, a conservative activist is warning.

Robby Starbuck, who has waged a public campaign against corporate diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies and wokeness, criticized Harley-Davidson in a post on X for appointing Artie Starrs as CEO last year due to his sponsorship of groups contributing to San Francisco Pride and offering antiracism training to teachers while in his previous corporate stops.

Starbuck led a consumer boycott against Harley-Davidson in 2024, which prompted the company to announce a rollback of DEI programs, but he warned that the hire suggests the company wasn’t committed to those changes over the long-term.

“Harley-Davidson’s recent hires show me they didn’t learn anything from the backlash they already faced for going woke,” Starbuck told FOX Business.

WHITE HOUSE STUDY SAYS DEI POLICIES COST US ECONOMY BY PROMOTING UNQUALIFIED MANAGERS

“You can’t tell working-class American riders that you respect them while filling leadership with people tied to woke policies, DEI activism and cultural radicalism. It is out of step with Harley’s customer base and heritage,” Starbuck said.

“At this point, enough is enough. They don’t deserve another chance. It’s time for riders to go elsewhere. Only through a real power struggle can Harley be saved,” he added.

Starbuck’s social media criticism of Harley-Davidson also included the company’s chief brand officer, Marcus Fischer, who previously led an advertising agency and encouraged efforts to boost transgender representation.

Ticker	Security	Last	Change	Change %
HOG	HARLEY-DAVIDSON INC.	24.35	+0.10	+0.41%

IS CORPORATE AMERICA BREAKING UP WITH DEI OR JUST TAKING ITS RELATIONSHIP UNDERGROUND?

“I expose this stuff because consumers deserve to know who is running the brands they support and what values those companies are pushing behind the scenes,” Starbuck said. “This isn’t about revenge. It’s about accountability. Companies should be politically neutral, merit-based and focused on making great products, not chasing approval from far-left activists.”

“My goal is to give forgotten consumers a voice and make it clear that if brands keep choosing woke ideology over their customers, those customers can and should walk away. There are consequences for woke behavior and woke executives,” he added.

DEI DISCLOSURE PARTICIPATION PLUMMETS AMONG MAJOR COMPANIES AS CORPORATE PULLBACK CONTINUES

FOX Business has reached out to Harley-Davidson for comment.

Harley-Davidson provided a statement to USA Today in a report about Starbuck’s criticism that defended its CEO.

“Since stepping into the role eight months ago, CEO Artie Starrs has spent time across the country listening directly to our riders, dealers, employees, and unions,” Harley-Davidson said in the statement. 

“As our dealers and employees can attest, our only agenda is getting back to basics: building great motorcycles, strengthening our network of 500+ U.S. dealers, and supporting a workforce that is proud of the product they put on the road. We have made meaningful improvements and changes, and that work continues,” the company added.

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TOMY International issued a recall Thursday for roughly 40,000 reusable baby bottles sold exclusively at Walmart after more than 130 reports were sent in about a potential choking hazard.

The advisory impacts Boon NURSH 8 oz reusable baby bottles, specifically the three-pack bottles sold in the “pink tie-dye” color pattern, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC).

WALMART WARNS SHOPPERS COULD FACE HIGHER PRICES AS FUEL COSTS SURGE, TAX REFUNDS DRY UP

The CPSC said the hard plastic outer shell of the bottle can bubble or partially peel off, which creates loose pieces of plastic film that pose a choking risk to young children.

The affected products, which were manufactured in Vietnam, were sold at Walmart stores nationwide and online at Walmart.com from November 2025 through May 2026 for around $20. 

ASBESTOS FEARS SPARK URGENT RECALL OF 120K+ SQUEEZE TOYS SOLD AT WALMART, OLLIE’S

So far, TOMY has received 135 reports of the outer plastic shell bubbling or peeling, though no injuries have been reported.

Consumers are urged to stop using the recalled baby bottles immediately. 

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Ticker	Security	Last	Change	Change %
WMT	WALMART INC.	119.77	+2.03	+1.72%

Customers can contact TOMY to receive a replacement set of three bottles in a different color or a refund in the form of a $22 store credit for booninc.com.

TOMY and Walmart did not immediately respond to FOX Business’ request for comment.

PUNE: The statistical models used by the India Meteorological Department (IMD) had failed to predict all the three droughts in India in the last decade. Though statistical models will still be used for monsoon forecast, the ministry of earth sciences is putting more emphasis on dynamic models.

M Rajeevan of National Atmospheric Research Laboratory said, “the failure to predict the 2009 drought has raised many serious issues. On the other hand, the state-of-the art coupled ocean atmospheric models have sho-wed improved skills in predicting inter annual variability of Indian summer monsoon rainfall.”

He was speaking at the golden jubilee conference of Indian Institute of Climate Change (IITM), Pune, on ‘opportunities and challenges in monsoon prediction in changing climate’. Since 2011, the IITM has used the coupled model for monsoon forecast.
Better weather forecast needs data from all parts of the globe. “In every part of the world, farmers are saying that the climate is not as it used to be. Hence, traditional knowledge is also failing. For better prediction of weather, we need observations from all countries. We need super computers of even higher capacities. We need to have knowledge about how to translate scientific progress into concrete applications,” said Michel Jarraud, secretary general, World Meteorological Organisation.