Stock market today: Dow, S&P 500, Nasdaq hit pause after tech sell-off in wait for Amazon earnings

Market Overview - US stock futures showed stability after a two-day tech sell-off, with S&P 500 futures up 0.1% and Nasdaq 100 futures up 0.3% as investors awaited Amazon's earnings and assessed Alphabet's AI spending plans [1][3] - The tech sector experienced a significant decline, with nearly $1 trillion wiped off the value of software stocks tracked in an iShares ETF over the past week [2][7] Company Earnings and Forecasts - Alphabet announced a substantial increase in AI investment, projecting up to $185 billion, which led to a decline in its shares [3] - Amazon's AWS cloud unit is expected to report a 21% increase in sales in its upcoming quarterly report [3] - Snap reported a strong fourth quarter with revenue of $1.71 billion, exceeding Wall Street estimates of $1.7 billion, and earnings per share of $0.03 [12][16] - E.l.f. Beauty raised its full-year 2026 sales outlook to between $1.6 billion and $1.61 billion, up from a previous range of $1.55 billion to $1.57 billion, and reported a 38% increase in net sales to $489.5 million [14][16] - Qualcomm's stock fell around 11% after reporting a revenue increase of 5% year over year to $12.3 billion, but provided a dim outlook for the second quarter due to a memory chip shortage [26][28] Market Sentiment and Trends - The recent tech sell-off was driven by concerns over AI potentially disrupting existing business models, rather than fears of a bubble [8][9] - Silver prices plunged by as much as 17%, erasing previous gains, as market sentiment turned negative across various asset classes [4][22] - Bitcoin fell significantly after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent ruled out a government bailout for the cryptocurrency, with prices nearing the critical $70,000 level [5][11] Capital Expenditure and Partnerships - Alphabet's forecast for capital expenditures in 2026 reached $180 billion, positively impacting partners like Broadcom, which saw its stock rise by 5% [20][21] - Oracle also increased its capital expenditure forecast to around $50 billion, indicating a broader trend among tech companies investing heavily in AI infrastructure [21]