New York Post·2026-02-05 17:15Market Overview - The S&P 500 dropped to an over two-week low, while the Nasdaq sank to its lowest level in more than two months, driven by renewed pressure on the AI theme following Alphabet's spending plans and Qualcomm's downbeat forecast [1][3] - The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell nearly 400 points, or 0.8%, to 49,113, with the S&P 500 losing 0.9% and the Nasdaq dropping 230 points, or 1% [1][3] Company-Specific Developments - Alphabet's shares fell over 3% after announcing it would double its capital expenditure this year, indicating an aggressive push in the AI sector [3][8] - Qualcomm's stock slid 8.2% after forecasting second-quarter revenue and profit below estimates, contributing to the overall market decline [3] - Microsoft and Tesla also experienced declines of 3.4% and 3.7%, respectively, as the pressure spread across tech mega-caps [3] Investment Trends - Big Tech is expected to invest more than $500 billion into infrastructure this year, raising concerns about high valuations and the timing of returns [4] - The CBOE volatility index rose 3.8 points to 20.49, reaching an over two-month high, reflecting increased market anxiety [4] Sector Performance - The S&P 500 software and services index fell 3.2%, marking a seventh consecutive session in the red and erasing approximately $830 billion in market value since January 28 [10] - Software and data services stocks, such as ServiceNow and Salesforce, saw declines of 5% and 4%, respectively, as investors reacted to disappointing earnings [6] Market Sentiment - There is a growing sentiment that rapidly improving AI tools may negatively impact demand for traditional software, leading to reduced growth expectations across the sector [7] - Amid risk-off sentiment, silver and gold resumed a decline, with silver plunging almost 13% [10][11] - The market is witnessing a rotation into cheaper, overlooked sectors, with consumer staples being the only sector trading in the green [13]