Stock Market Update

[BRIEFING.COM] The major averages continue to chart session lows at midday as selling pressure intensifies across mega-cap technology and growth stocks.

Amazon (AMZN 238.46, -5.34, -2.19%) is contributing to the weakness following its Q3 earnings report, which featured an EPS miss and negative free cash flow despite accelerating AWS revenue growth and record operating profitability. Investors remain concerned about the returns on the company's massive AI infrastructure investments, particularly as management anticipates even higher capital spending in 2027. Rising debt and financing costs are adding to those concerns, weighing on the consumer discretionary sector (-1.0%), while the Vanguard Mega Cap Growth ETF (-2.7%) reflects the broader pressure on the market's largest growth stocks.

Starbucks (SBUX 102.88, -2.63, -2.49%) is another notable consumer discretionary laggard despite reporting better-than-expected earnings and strong comparable sales growth. The company's FY27 revenue outlook fell short of expectations, overshadowing encouraging progress in its turnaround efforts, including improving profitability and stronger U.S. sales trends.