-- US equity indexes fell as technology and consumer discretionary stocks weighed on investor sentiment, which remains frail as the standoff over the Strait of Hormuz, the choke-point for about a fifth of global crude oil flows, persists.
The Nasdaq Composite fell 0.9% to 24,438.50, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average down 0.4% to 49,310.32, and the S&P 500 lower by 0.4% to 7,108.40 on Thursday. Utilities and industrials led the gainers.
Shares of IBM (IBM) slid 8.3%, among the steepest decliners on the Dow, following Q1 results. Software growth decelerated to 8% in constant currency from 11% in Q4 and 9% in Q3, a "potential red flag for the bears," CFRA said in a note.
Tesla (TSLA) slid 3.6% after the firm issued higher-than-expected 2026 capital expenditure guidance. TechCrunch reported the group is planning to spend $25 billion, compared with $8.5 billion in 2025.
ServiceNow (NOW) reported strong Q1 results, but softer organic revenue trends and a slightly weaker margin outlook weighed on the overall forecast, Oppenheimer said in a note. Shares of ServiceNow sank 18%, the worst performer on the S&P 500.
Texas Instruments (TXN) soared 19%, among the top outperformers on the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq, after the company posted higher Q1 earnings and sales and set out Q2 guidance above consensus.
In geopolitical developments, President Donald Trump ordered the US Navy to "shoot and kill" any boat that is laying mines in Hormuz, according to a Truth Social post on Thursday. On the same day, Iran flaunted its tightened grip over Hormuz with a video of commandos storming a cargo ship named MSC Francesca, Reuters reported.
The United States and Iran remain at an impasse, with Tehran refusing to negotiate a peace deal as long as the US Navy continues to blockade its ports and Washington refuses to lift the siege. Trump said the pressure is on Iran to reach a deal ending the war, claiming he has "all the time in the world," CNN reported.
Iran "had made the lifting of the US blockade a precondition for the resumption of negotiations," Helima Croft, head of global commodity strategy at RBC Capital Markets, said in a note. "President Trump, for his part, has indicated that the ceasefire will remain in place for now, leaving the conflict in a no airstrike, minimal movement of ships, unsustainable equilibrium."
West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures jumped 3.6% to $96.51, and Brent crude futures advanced 3.7% to $105.58.
In precious metals, gold futures fell 1.1% to $4,703.3, and silver futures dropped 3.5% to $75.27 as higher crude oil prices tend to raise inflation concerns. Most US Treasury yields rose, reflecting a similar dynamic in the fixed-income complex in addition to the macroeconomic data. The 10-year yield jumped 3.1 basis points to 4.33%, and the two-year rate climbed 3.8 basis points to 3.83%.
In US economic news, initial jobless claims rose to 214,000 in the week ended April 18 from an upwardly revised 208,000, compared with the 210,000 print expected in a Bloomberg-compiled survey.
Meanwhile, the April flash reading of manufacturing conditions from S&P Global improved to a 47-month high of 54.0 from 52.3 in March, compared with the 52.5 anticipated in a Bloomberg-compiled poll.