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Stock Market News: Dow Closes Higher
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite had small gains. Tech shares slid.
Last Updated:
Feb. 6, 2024 at 7:54 PM EST
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Stocks finished the day with small gains, although bank and tech shares were lower.
The gains came after a selloff in the previous session. Investors have had to shift their expectations after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said a rate cut may not come in March.
And with earnings season near the halfway mark, Eli Lilly and Palantir posted their latest results. Palantir stock soared, and was headed for a record gain.
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Stocks marked a small gain overall on Tuesday, while technology and bank shares edged lower.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 141 points, or 0.4%. The S&P 500 gained 0.2%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite was up 0.1%.
Most components of the S&P 500 were up on Tuesday. But some of the biggest decliners were in technology segment, with shares of Adobe, Advanced Micro Devices, and Micron Technology losing value.
New York Community Bancorp extended its slump, declining by double digits.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said during a congressional testimony on Tuesday that commercial real estate is a concern.
“Office properties in some cities are of special concern because vacancy rates have increased,” Yellen told lawmakers.
Yields on the 10-year declined 0.072 percentage point to 4.091%. There will be an auction of $42 billion in 10-year notes on Wednesday, the highest offering amount by the Treasury ever, according to Treasury data.
Solid demand for the notes can calm nerves and pull yields even lower.
“The most obvious inflection point on the horizon will be Wednesday’s auction results; an event that we ultimately anticipate will demonstrate sufficient appetite for new 10s and prevent any further progress toward a higher yield plateau,” BMO rates strategist Ian Lyngen wrote.
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In the absence of relevant data, Fed officials continued to push back against markets' hopes of an early start of the U.S. easing cycle, but Treasury yields fall nonetheless, potentially indicating a ceiling could be forming.
The 10-year declines 0.072 percentage point, to 4.091%, while the two-year loses 0.064 p.p. to 4.406%.
Both snap a two-day winning streak triggered by stronger-than-expected job creation in the U.S.
The 10-year peaked at 4.178% last month, as markets started to delay their calls for the Fed's first cut.
May is now seen as the most likely FOMC meeting to launch the easing cycle, according to the CME's FedWatch tool.
Crude futures rise for a second straight session after last week's selloff but with gains limited by easing expectations of wider conflict in the Middle East.
"Oil is still moving. It's moving more slowly, so the market's on edge, but they're also keeping an eye very closely on what the Federal Reserve is going to do," says Phil Flynn of the Price Futures Group.
Saudi Arabia's decision to keep its official selling price unchanged in March was supportive as it "suggests that they're not concerned about losing market share, or demand," he says, and adds that Wednesday's inventories report from the EIA will probably be "pretty sanguine."
WTI for March delivery settles up 0.7% at $73.31 a barrel, and April Brent rises 0.8% at $78.59 a barrel.