NEW YORK (AP) \u2014 The U.S. stock market is slipping Thursday after oil prices resumed their climb.<\/p>\n
The S&P 500 fell 0.3% and is on track for a fourth drop<\/a> in five days after setting its all-time high<\/a>. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 110 points, or 0.2%, as of 11:45 a.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 0.4% lower.<\/p>\n A halt in the torrid run for stocks benefiting from the artificial-intelligence<\/a> boom has slowed the U.S. market recently. Not even another better-than-expected profit report from Nvidia<\/a> was enough to kick it back into gear.<\/p>\n The chip company reported stronger profit and revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected, while also forecasting revenue for the current quarter that cleared analysts\u2019 estimates. \u201cThe buildout of AI factories \u2014 the largest infrastructure expansion in human history \u2014 is accelerating at extraordinary speed,\u201d CEO Jensen Huang said.<\/p>\n But such performances and such talk have become routine<\/a>, and Nvidia’s stock swiveled between losses and gains before falling 1.7%.<\/p>\n Some analysts said the weakness may have simply been because investors were locking in profits after Nvidia\u2019s stock had soared nearly 70% over the prior year, more than double the S&P 500\u2019s 27% jump. The broad AI industry is also getting criticism for becoming too expensive, as well as too circular<\/a> as Nvidia has bought ownership stakes in companies that use its own chips that drive Nvidia\u2019s revenue.<\/p>\n Pressure built on Wall Street, meanwhile, as the price for a barrel of Brent crude oil climbed 2.6% to $107.76 and trimmed its loss for the week. Oil prices have been swinging up and down with uncertainty about how long the war with Iran will keep the Strait of Hormuz shut, which is preventing oil tankers from exiting the Persian Gulf to deliver crude.<\/p>\n The higher oil prices pushed Treasury yields upward in the bond market, resuming rises following a slowdown the day before.<\/p>\n Climbing yields have cranked up the pressure<\/a> on financial markets worldwide. They’re slowing economies and weighing on prices for stocks and all kinds of other investments. Besides driving up rates for mortgages<\/a>, high yields could also curtail companies\u2019 borrowing to build the AI data centers that have been supporting the U.S. economy\u2019s growth <\/a> recently.<\/p>\n The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 4.61% from 4.57% late Wednesday.<\/p>\n It had gotten near 4.63% in the morning, after a report gave the latest signal that the U.S. job market remains in better shape than economists expected. The number of U.S. workers applying for unemployment benefits last week unexpectedly declined in an indication of fewer layoffs<\/a>.<\/p>\n But yields eased a bit following a mixed preliminary report showing weaker-than-expected growth for business activity among U.S. services businesses and improved growth for U.S. manufacturers. Companies are feeling the effects of accelerating inflation and are seeing subdued growth in their order books, the preliminary data from an S&P Global survey said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe damaging economic impact from the war in the Middle East is becoming increasingly evident in the business surveys,\u201d according to Chris Williamson, chief business economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence.<\/p>\n Inflation is worsening<\/a> even beyond the high oil prices caused by the Iran war, while U.S. households are showing widespread discouragement about the economy<\/a>.<\/p>\n Elsewhere on Wall Street, Walmart fell 7.8% following its profit report. The retailer delivered another quarter of impressive revenue<\/a> but offered up weaker forecasts for upcoming profit than analysts expected.<\/p>\n On the winning side of Wall Street was Ralph Lauren, which jumped 11.3% after reporting stronger profit and revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected.<\/p>\n In stock markets abroad, indexes were mixed in Europe following bigger moves in Asia.<\/p>\n