| | | Large-cap indices close slightly lower
30-Mar-21 16:20 ET
Dow -104.41 at 33066.96, Nasdaq -14.25 at 13045.42, S&P -12.54 at 3958.55
briefing.com
[BRIEFING.COM] The S&P 500 (-0.3%), Nasdaq Composite (-0.1%), and Dow Jones Industrial Average (-0.3%) closed slightly lower on Tuesday in a relatively lackluster session. The Russell 2000 rose 1.7% to bounce back from yesterday's 3% drop.
There was a semblance of the so-called reflation/reopening trade, as many small-cap/cyclical stocks outperformed and long-term interest rates briefly moved higher. Recovery optimism was supported by a nice jump in the Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index, which rose to 109.7 in March (Briefing.com consensus 97.0) from 90.4 in February.
The consumer discretionary (+0.8%), financials (+0.7%), and industrials (+0.4%) sectors closed higher. but the other eight S&P 500 sectors closed lower. The defensive-oriented information technology (-1.0%), consumer staples (-1.1%), utilities (-0.9%), and health care (-0.9%) sectors underperformed with 1% declines.
The higher rates benefited the financials sector, but they did come down from session highs, which may have helped the Nasdaq pare its 1.1% intraday decline. The 10-yr yield settled one basis point higher at 1.73% after nearly touching 1.78% prior to the open.
Interestingly, the Nasdaq (-0.1%) fared much better than the information technology sector (-1.0%) today. Part of that had to do with a strong showing in Tesla (TSLA 635.62, +24.33, +4.0%) and Baidu (BIDU 218.23, +13.53, +6.6%).
In corporate news, shares of Broadcom (AVGO 456.16, -16.46, -3.5%) fell 3.5% after The Information reported that Amazon (AMZN 3055.29, -20.44, -0.7%) is developing its own networking chips. Illumina (ILMN 368.96, -26.04, -6.6%) fell 6.6% after the FTC challenged the company's proposed acquisition of cancer detection test maker Grail.
Separately, Wells Fargo (WFC 39.39, +0.95, +2.5%) said it did not experience losses related to closing out its exposure to Archegos Capital Management.
The 2-yr yield was unchanged at 0.14%. The U.S. Dollar Index increased 0.4% to 93.28. WTI crude futures fell 1.6%, or $0.98, to $60.57/bbl.
Reviewing Tuesday's economic data:
- The Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index jumped to 109.7 in March (Briefing.com consensus 97.0) from a downwardly revised 90.4 (from 91.3) in February.
- The key takeaway from the report is that the series reached its highest level in a year on improved expectations for a further recovery.
- The FHFA Housing Price Index increased 1.0% m/m in January following an upwardly revised 1.2% increase in December (from 1.1%).
- The S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Index increased 11.1% y/yr in January (Briefing.com consensus 11.0%) following an upwardly revised 10.2% increase in December (from 10.1%).
Looking ahead, investors will receive the ADP Employment Change Report for March, the Chicago PMI for March, Pending Home Sales for February, and the weekly MBA Mortgage Applications Index on Wednesday.
- Russell 2000 +11.2% YTD
- Dow Jones Industrial Average +8.0% YTD
- S&P 500 +5.4% YTD
- Nasdaq Composite +1.2% YTD
Crude futures settle lower
30-Mar-21 15:25 ET
Dow -45.51 at 33125.86, Nasdaq +4.27 at 13063.94, S&P -5.46 at 3965.63
[BRIEFING.COM] The S&P 500 is down 0.1%, while the Russell 2000 is up 1.8% after underperforming yesterday.
One last look at the S&P 500 sectors shows eight trading lower and three trading higher. Laggards include information technology (-0.8%), consumers staples (-1.0%), and utilities (-1.0%). The financials (+0.9%), consumer discretionary (+0.8%), and industrials (+0.6%) sectors are the gainers in the S&P 500.
WTI crude futures settled lower by 1.6%, or $0.98, to $60.57/bbl. |
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