THE Nasdaq Compound and the S&P500 rose on Thursday, ending three-day losing streaks as investors resumed buying tech stocks.
The tech-heavy index rebounded 0.95% to 13,630.61, while the S&P 500 rose 0.37% to 4,381.89 — both closing near session highs. During this time, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was 4.81 points, or 0.01%, lower at 33,946.71.
“The Nasdaq is higher today, but again it was down yesterday,” said Terry Sandven, chief equity strategist at US Bank Wealth Management. “Stocks appear to be in pause mode. The tussle between the bull and bear market camps is balanced, implying uncertainty and heightened volatility for the foreseeable future.”
Investors have been snapping up some major tech stocks that have been rattled this week. Tesla shares closed higher, despite falling earlier in the day, even after Wall Street’s second major bank in as many days downgraded the high-flying retail trader’s darling. The shares have more than doubled this year. Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jonas, a longtime Tesla bull, revised his rating on Thursday to match the overweight weight. He said the stock presented “a more balanced risk reward” after its rally. Meanwhile, the actions of Amazon were more than 4% higher. Microsoft increased by 1.8%. Apple reached a new all-time high at the end of the day, up more than 1%.
Elsewhere, Boeing supplier Spirit AeroSystems fell more than 9% after the company halted production at its Kansas plant. This follows the announcement of a workers’ strike, which is expected to start on Saturday. Separately, Boeing shares also fell more than 3%, weighing on the Dow Jones.
THE S&P500 slipped 0.5% on Wednesday, marking its worst daily performance in June. The stock benchmark is now down 0.6% since the start of the week, on track to break a five-week winning streak. It comes after the broader market index hit its highest level in more than a year last week.
Wednesday’s drop came as Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said. more rate hikes are likely to fight inflation, throwing cold water on investors who hoped the central bank was close to the end of its tightening cycle. The Fed kept rates stable at last week’s policy meeting after 10 consecutive increases. However, officials said there could be two more quarter-point increases this year.
“The markets are weaker because I think they realize that not only the Federal Reserve, but the global central banks are not done, and are still fully engaged in their fight against inflation and will sacrifice the economic growth if they need it,” Megan said. Horneman, chief investment officer at Verdence Capital Advisors.
THE bank of england raised interest rates from 50 basis points Thursday, its 13th consecutive increase. The decision follows the last of this week inflation data for the UK, which posted a higher than expected reading of 8.7% in May.
