WALL Street stocks retreated on Thursday following disappointing US economic data, as Facebook parent Meta and other large companies tumbled after earnings.

The US economy grew 1.6 per cent in the first quarter, data showed, much slower than expected as consumer spending and exports decelerated.

Analysts also pointed to inflation data embedded in the GDP report that will likely keep interest rates high.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished at 38,085.73, down 1.0 per cent but about 330 points above its session low.

The broad-based S&P 500 declined 0.5 per cent to 5,048.43, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index shed 0.6 per cent to 15,611.76.

“We had a very prolific rally over the last four or five months, we’ve hit a soft patch now,” said Angelo Kourkafas of Edward Jones.

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“The economy’s slowing down is not as bad as it appears on the surface,” he said.

Shares of Facebook parent Meta sank 10.6 per cent as worries about heavy spending planned on artificial intelligence countered strong results.

Southwest Airlines meanwhile plunged 7.0 per cent as it reported a US$231 million loss and announced it would shut operations at four airports.

The carrier also trimmed its 2024 capital budget in light of fewer expected airplane deliveries from Boeing.

Among others reporting results, Caterpillar dropped 7.0 per cent, IBM dove 8.1 per cent, Ford rose 0.7 per cent and American Airlines climbed 1.5 per cent. AFP