US stocks traded mixed on Thursday as a rally in artificial intelligence-linked chipmakers led by Micron Technology offset losses in Apple, which came under pressure after announcing price increases across several products.The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 228 points, or 0.4%, in morning trade, while the S&P 500 slipped 0.3% after giving up an early gain. The Nasdaq Composite fell 1.2%, weighed down by declines in large technology stocks, AP reported.Micron Technology surged 9.7% after the memory-chip maker reported quarterly profit and revenue that comfortably beat Wall Street estimates and issued a stronger-than-expected revenue forecast for the current quarter.The upbeat results helped ease investor concerns that AI-related chip stocks had become overvalued after their sharp rallies this year.Qualcomm also gained 3.1% after raising its long-term growth forecast, saying the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence is expected to double revenue from businesses outside smartphones, including data centres, to USD 40 billion by fiscal 2029.Apple shares dropped 4.8% after the company increased prices on several products, including 15% to 20% hikes for Mac computers, according to analysts cited by AP.The higher memory and storage costs benefiting semiconductor companies are also increasing expenses for device makers such as Apple.Markets also found support from easing Treasury yields after fresh inflation data came largely in line with expectations.Brent crude slipped 0.1% to USD 73.81 a barrel, close to levels seen before the Iran conflict. Oil prices have retreated significantly after briefly crossing USD 100 following the closure of the Strait of Hormuz during the conflict.The easing in energy prices has raised hopes that inflationary pressures could moderate in the coming months.A report released on Thursday showed US consumer inflation, measured by the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) index, accelerated to 4.1% in May from 3.8% in April, matching economists’ expectations.The yield on the benchmark 10-year US Treasury eased to 4.36% from 4.41% on Wednesday and 4.56% earlier this month.Asian markets largely advanced, led by South Korea’s Kospi, which surged 5.4% as AI-related stocks rallied, including a 13.1% jump in SK Hynix.Japan’s Nikkei 225 gained 4.6%, while Britain’s FTSE 100 rose 0.6%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was the major laggard, falling 1.4%.
