Wall Street Slips as Dow Drops 653 Points; AI Spending and Fed Decision in Focus

U.S. stocks closed lower Friday, Oct. 23, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average falling 652.82 points, or 1.23%, to 52,215.16, as investors weighed doubts over massive AI capital spending ahead of key tech earnings and a Federal Reserve rate decision. The S&P 500 lost 39.75 points, or 0.52%, to 7,623.68, and the Nasdaq Composite slipped 53.52 points, or 0.21%, to 25,955.34. Telecom stocks bore the brunt of selling after reports that SpaceX is seeking thousands of cell towers to build a fourth U.S. wireless carrier. AT&T and T-Mobile each fell nearly 8%, while Verizon lost 1.2%. Tower operators gained, with Crown Castle up 9% and American Tower up 4%. Energy was the bright spot, with the S&P 500 energy sector up 2.5% to a record amid Middle East supply concerns after Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia. SLB rose 7% on better-than-expected third-quarter earnings. For the week, the S&P 500 fell 0.5% and the Nasdaq 0.7%, while the Dow added 0.4% for a third straight weekly gain. Alphabet, Microsoft and Amazon report next week, and the Fed is expected to hold rates steady on Oct. 28.