In the early hours of October 17, Beijing time, US stocks closed lower on Thursday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropping by 280 points. Investors are assessing the impact of robust bank earnings and AI trading momentum against the backdrop of risks such as the US government shutdown and international trade tensions. The government shutdown has now entered its third week, with the Senate rejecting a temporary funding bill for the tenth time.

The Dow dropped by 277.67 points, or 0.60%, closing at 45,975.64 points; the Nasdaq fell by 144.07 points, a decline of 0.64%, to end at 22,526.01 points; the S&P 500 index dropped 48.37 points, or 0.73%, finishing at 6,622.69 points.

On Thursday, investors continued to monitor US earnings reports. J.B. Hunt Transport Services saw its stock surge after reporting earnings and revenue exceeding Wall Street expectations; Salesforce also issued strong performance guidance at its annual Dreamforce conference. United Airlines, however, reported revenue below expectations.

US stocks closed mixed on Wednesday, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq indexes edging up, buoyed by strong earnings from several large banks that helped boost investor confidence.

Market volatility has intensified this week due to escalating international trade tensions. The widely referenced Cboe Volatility Index (VIX), known as Wall Street's fear gauge, closed at 20.6 on Wednesday.

The market has been turbulent since last Friday when President Trump threatened to impose an additional 100% tariff on Chinese imports, and on Tuesday stated that a trade ban on Chinese cooking oil would be implemented.

Treasury Secretary Yellen indicated that the Trump administration plans to impose minimum pricing regulations across several industries to counter foreign market manipulation.

As the US government shutdown enters its third week, the Senate has once again failed to advance the temporary funding bill for the tenth time. On October 16, the Senate voted 51 to 45 against the Republican funding proposal. Reports indicate that the Republicans needed 60 votes to advance this bill, which would fund the government until the end of November. This marks the tenth consecutive rejection of a temporary funding bill in the Senate following the government shutdown over the past two weeks.

The shutdown has resulted in federal agencies pausing the release of critical economic data, leaving traders with limited information amidst ongoing concerns about the labor market, consumer impacts from tariffs, high-interest rates, and historically high valuations.

Adam Turnquist, Chief Technical Strategist at LPL, noted that although the S&P 500 has soared to record highs since early July, a closer examination of market breadth reveals a divergence between price action and individual stock participation. AI-driven trading has accounted for much of the recent surge in the S&P 500, with tech giants such as Nvidia, Alphabet, Apple, Broadcom, and Tesla contributing to 60% of the total market returns from July 1 to October 14.

Turnquist stated, "While trend models indicate that more S&P 500 constituents are in an uptrend than in a downtrend, the narrowing gap highlights emerging cracks in market fundamentals. These cracks could be repaired through increased market participation, but they also amplify the concentration risk associated with gains driven by a handful of leading stocks."

Key Individual Stocks: - Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) provided fiscal year 2026 earnings and cash flow guidance below expectations. - Salesforce set a target to achieve revenue exceeding $60 billion by fiscal year 2030. - United Airlines reported third-quarter earnings that surpassed expectations, but revenue fell short. - Becton Dickinson (BDX) saw fourth-quarter revenue growth but lowered its annual sales forecast. - Daiwa expects increased demand for automotive laser radar technologies. - Navitas announced a $25 million stock buyback plan. - Pony.ai's Hong Kong IPO has been filed. - TSMC recorded all-time high performance in the third quarter, with an outlook for the fourth quarter above expectations. - ASE Group reported a 9% year-over-year revenue increase for September, and the K18B new plant is officially under construction.