Finance

A surprising contraction in July retail sales and softer consumer confidence data have pressured equities while altering interest rate expectations. While the economic slowdown raises concerns over overall expansion, it has solidified Wall Street's expectations that the Federal Reserve will hold interest rates steady in September.

Semiconductor and hardware technology shares experienced a sharp selloff after recent major market rallies. Despite a quarterly financial beat and an upgraded outlook, Applied Materials dropped significantly, pulling down sector peers like Broadcom as investors question whether soaring artificial intelligence valuations are sustainable.

Shares of Reddit surged by roughly 13% at the end of the week. The aggressive buying interest follows official announcements that the platform will be added to the broad-market S&P 500 index in the coming week.