Dow continues to fall as poor earnings and rate fears grate on nerves

U.S. stocks were headed for further losses on Thursday as lingering concerns about higher long-term interest rates and a selloff at Salesforce (CRM) dampened investor sentiment.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) fell 0.8%, or about 350 points, after losing more than 400 points to lead Wednesday’s stock market slide. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) fell 0.5% while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) fell about 0.4%.

Stocks lost strength amid renewed gloom over the likelihood of rate cuts, fueled by data showing less cooling in inflation than the Federal Reserve wants. At the same time, hopes that Nvidia’s (NVDA) blockbuster earnings would spur a broader stock market rally were dashed.

This rate anxiety pushed US bond yields this week to their highest levels since early May, pushing the 10-year Treasury (^TNX) back above 4.5%. Although the benchmark yield fell on Thursday, it remained above the key level, trading around 4.6%.

Salesforce’s (CRM) results raised further concerns about the likely losers of the AI ​​boom. Shares of the software maker fell 15% after announcing that sales growth would stagnate at its slowest level in its history.

At the same time, the U.S. economy grew at a slower pace than initially thought during the first quarter. The Bureau of Economic Analysis second estimate of US gross domestic product (GDP) for the first quarter) showed the economy grew at an annualized rate of 1.3% during the period, down from an initial reading of 1.6% in April.

Learn more: How does the labor market affect inflation?

A flurry of retail profits before the bell provided further clues about consumer resilience and economic health. Shares of Kohl’s (KSS) slumped after the department store chain’s surprise quarterly loss and cut its annual sales forecast. Meanwhile, Best Buy (BBY) reported a larger-than-expected decline in comparable sales as Americans are more discerning about spending on non-essentials.