Tech Stocks Eye Third Day Of Losses, Walmart Sinks: What's Moving Markets Thursday?

Technology stocks on the Nasdaq 100 were poised for a third consecutive day of losses Thursday, as investors continued to adopt a risk-off stance ahead of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's speech at the central bank's annual Jackson Hole Symposium on Friday.

Shares of Palantir Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:PLTR) traded flat by midday in New York, following six straight sessions of declines that have erased 18% from the stock's recent highs.

Major equity indexes were slightly lower, with the S&P 500, Dow Jones, and Nasdaq Composite all down around 0.4%. Only a few sectors are managing to stay in the green.

On the economic front, weekly jobless claims rose to 235,000—the highest level in eight weeks—adding to signs of a cooling labor market. However, flash PMIs from S&P Global showed a stronger-than-expected rebound in both manufacturing and services activity for August, suggesting resilient business sentiment.

The U.S. dollar index (DXY) ...