US STOCKS-US stock futures falter on AI jitters, Nasdaq braces for steep monthly fall

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27/02/2026 11:41

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Futures down: Dow 0.55%, S&P 500 0.36%, Nasdaq 0.31%

Feb 27 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures slid on Friday as growing AI unease weighed on technology stocks, with the Nasdaq staring at its steepest monthly drop since March 2025, and investors awaited key inflation data later in the day.

Technology stocks saw immense turbulence this month due to AI concerns, even as investors fretted about the payoff from massive planning spending on artificial-intelligence technology.

Brewing tariff uncertainty also stoked volatility after the U.S. Supreme Court last week voided most of the duties U.S. President Donald Trump imposed last year. In response, Trump announced a temporary global tariff of 10% that came into effect on Tuesday.

Nvidia NVDA.O inched up 0.4% in premarket trading after sliding more than 5% in the previous session despite strong earnings, a sign that risk sentiment for all things AI remained shaky.

Zscaler ZS.O lost 9.1% after the cloud security firm reported a wider net loss in the second quarter, while Intuit INTU.O dipped 3.6% after the financial software company forecast third-quarter profit below estimates.

Software shares were rocked earlier this year on fears of industrywide AI-led disruptions. Financial brokerages, data analytics and legal services, real estate services and trucking are also hit hard by brewing AI concerns.

The S&P 500 .SPX and the Nasdaq .IXIC clocked losses in the last session, with the Nasdaq closing below its 50-day moving average for the 17th straight session. The closely followed moving average is seen as a proxy for the intermediate-term trend.

In economic data, a January producer prices reading due before the bell could offer insights into the U.S. Federal Reserve's interest rate path.

At 06:00 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis YMcv1 fell 271 points, or 0.55%, S&P 500 E-minis EScv1 shed 24.75 points, or 0.36%, and Nasdaq 100 E-minis NQcv1 lost 78 points, or 0.31%.

Most megacap and growth stocks inched lower. Chip stocks including AMD AMD.O and Broadcom AVGO.O also declined.

Netflix NFLX.O added 7.4% as investors cheered its decision to exit the fight for Warner Bros Discovery WBD.O, which fell 2%, while Paramount Skydance PSKY.O advanced 7.8% after it won the race for some of the world's most prized TV and film assets.

Block XYZ.N surged nearly 19% after the payments firm said it will cut over 4,000 jobs, nearly half its workforce, as part of an overhaul to embed artificial intelligence across its operation.

Dell DELL.N climbed 10.6% after the PC-maker said it expects revenue from its key AI-optimized servers business to double in fiscal year 2027 and promised to return more cash to shareholders.

Duolingo DUOL.O dropped almost 25% after the language-learning app forecast first-quarter and 2026 bookings below expectations.

 (Reporting by Shashwat Chauhan in Bengaluru; Editing by Pooja Desai)

 ((Shashwat.Chauhan@thomsonreuters.com;))