Market Report, 2026-01-29

Thursday was a turbulent day. Although stocks closed only slightly lower, the day started with a heavier dip. The selloff was led by Microsoft after it reported slowing growth in its key cloud unit while maintaining record spending on artificial intelligence—a move that raised concerns about a slower payout. The sentiment spread to the broader AI investment theme, which has been a major focus and is now seen by some as possibly overcrowded.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average, an index that is relatively less exposed to the AI investment theme, advanced 56 points to 49,072. The NASDAQ, the technology-heavy index, declined by 0.53%. The S&P 500 continued to hover slightly below its all-time high at 6,969.
Although more sectors ended the day in the green than otherwise, the technology sector declined by 1.58%, once again reminding investors how dominant its influence is on the U.S. stock market. Nevertheless, the communication services sector, which also contains two significant AI-themed stocks, ended the day 2.6% higher, as Meta provided a solid outlook citing AI-driven advertising performance gains and a strategic shift toward “personal superintelligence.”

Similar dynamics took place in the bond market, where an initial slight decline turned into a rally. The U.S. 5-year Treasury yield declined by 3 basis points to 3.81%, and the 10-year yield fell by 2 basis points to 4.24%. A similar reversal occurred in the gold market, bringing prices back above the 5,400 mark. Cryptocurrencies experienced a severe drawdown, with Bitcoin losing more than 5% of its value.

All eyes are on tomorrow’s inflation report, and we will continue to provide updates.