Financial Markets                      02/04 09:30

   

   NEW YORK (AP) -- The U.S. stock market is drifting in mixed trading on 
Wednesday, while gold's price stabilized further and climbed back above $5,000 
per ounce.

   The S&P 500 was virtually unchanged in early trading, coming off its fourth 
modest drop in the last five days. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 284 
points, or 0.6%, as of 9:35 a.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 
0.4% lower.

   Technology stocks weighed on the market for a second straight day. Advanced 
Micro Devices sank 12.9% even though the chip company reported a stronger 
profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. It also gave a forecast 
for revenue for the start of 2026 that topped analysts' expectations, but that 
may not have been enough for investors after its stock had doubled over the 
last 12 months.

   Tech stocks are broadly feeling pressure, even when they deliver 
stronger-than-expected profits. Big Tech stocks are facing criticism that their 
prices shot too high following their yearslong dominance of the market. 
Companies like software makers, meanwhile, are struggling with questions about 
whether they'll lose in the future to competitors powered by 
artificial-intelligence technology.

   Some tech stocks nevertheless climbed, including a 12.1% rise for Super 
Micro Computer. The company, which sells AI servers and other equipment, 
delivered a stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected.

   Eli Lilly rallied 8% after topping analysts' expectations for profit in the 
latest quarter. It's been riding big growth created by its Mounjaro and 
Zepbound products for diabetes and weight loss.

   Match Group added 2.2% after reporting better results than analysts expected 
and increasing its dividend. The company credited early signs of success from 
efforts to improve outcomes for users. It said a new facial verification 
feature for its Tinder service, for example, led to a sharp drop in 
interactions with "bad actors" where it's been rolled out.

   Gold and silver prices were also strong following their sudden washouts over 
the last week. Gold climbed 2.6% and rose to $5,061.80 per ounce. It's been on 
a wild ride after roughly doubling in price over 12 months. After nearing 
$5,600 last week, it fell below $4,500 on Monday.

   Silver's price, which has been on an even wilder ride, rose 9.4%.

   Their prices had surged as investors looked for safer places to keep their 
money amid worries about everything from tariffs to a weaker U.S. dollar to 
heavy debt loads for governments worldwide. But critics said their prices 
simply rose too far, too fast and were due for a pullback.

   In the bond market, Treasury yields held relatively steady after a report 
suggested that U.S. employers outside of the government hired fewer workers 
last month than economists expected.

   The yield on the 10-year Treasury held at 4.28%, where it was late Tuesday.

   In stock markets abroad, indexes were mixed across Europe and Asia.

   Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 0.8% from its all-time high. Nintendo sank 11%, even 
as the video game company reported strong profits. Investors and analysts are 
concerned about whether sales momentum can be maintained for the Switch 2 game 
console that was rolled out last year.

   South Korea's Kospi, meanwhile, climbed 1.6% to another record.

   ___

   AP Business Writers Chan Ho-him and Matt Ott contributed

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