April’s consumer price index climbed 3.8% year-over-year, with core inflation excluding food and energy at 2.8%, leading fed funds futures to flip from rate-cut bets to a 51% probability of a rate hike by January 2027. Markets had anticipated aggressive easing from the Fed’s prospective chair but now face a higher-for-longer scenario.

The shift in monetary policy expectations triggered a sharp selloff across growth and technology stocks, pressuring chipmaker valuations. Qualcomm shares fell on renewed concerns that elevated borrowing costs will damp capital expenditure in telecom and semiconductor sectors, reducing revenue growth prospects.