雅虎香港財經 Stock Market News for June 14, 2024
Wall Street closed mixed on Thursday, driven by tech stocks. A couple of indexes posted record closing highs again based on softer-than-expected producer-side inflation numbers and softer labor market data. Two of the three major stock indexes ended in the green, while one ended in the red.
How Did the Benchmarks Perform?
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) slid 65.17 points, or 0.2%, to close at 38,647.04. Fifteen components of the 30-stock index ended in negative territory, while the other 15 ended in positive.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gained 59.12 points, or 0.3%, to close at 17,667.56.
The S&P 500 advanced 12.71 points, or 0.2%, to close at 5433.74. However, six of the 11 broad sectors of the benchmark index closed in the red. The Technology Select Sector SPDR (XLK), the Real Estate Select Sector SPDR (XLRE) and the Utilities Select Sector SPDR (XLU) gained 0.8%, 0.5% and 0.2%, respectively, while the Energy Select Sector SPDR (XLE) fell 0.9%.
The fear-gauge CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) decreased 0.8% to 11.94. A total of 10.1 billion shares were traded on Thursday, lower than the last 20-session average of 12.5 billion. Decliners outnumbered advancers by a 1.58-to-1 ratio on the NYSE. On the Nasdaq, declining issues outnumbered advancing ones by a 1.91-to-1 ratio.
Negative May PPI Drives the Markets
Per the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Producer Price Index (PPI) for final demand declined 0.2% in May, seasonally adjusted, after rising 0.5% in April. Over the last 12 months, the index for final demand increased 2.2%. Core PPI, which excludes food and energy, remained unchanged in May after jumping 0.2% the preceding month.
These producer-side inflation numbers come in as a major boost for investors and markets did extremely well to start the day off. Market participants concluded that these numbers might make the Fed reconsider its recent hawkish stance on interest rates, and Nasdaq and the S&P 500 breached historic highs during trading. In the previous session, Fed Chair Jerome Powell had mentioned that the central bank had already factored in the Consumer Price Index before publishing its views. The PPI data, thus, may be a catalyst.
Mega-cap growth stocks like tech usually do well when inflation seems to be coming down, and the outlook looks better. Real estate and utility stocks also led the gains. Consequently, shares of NVIDIA Corporation NVDA and Exelon Corporation EXC gained 3.5% and 1.9%, respectively. NVIDIA currently carries a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Economic Data
The Labor Department said on Thursday that initial jobless claims were 242,000, increasing 13,000 for the week ending Jun 8 from the previous week’s unrevised level of 229,000. The four-week moving average was 227,000, marking a rise of 4,750 from the previous week’s unrevised average of 222,250.
Continuing claims came in at 1,820,000 for the week ending Jun 1, increasing 30,000 from the previous week’s revised level. The previous week's level was revised down by 2,000 from 1,792,000 to 1,790,000. The four-week moving average was 1,796,750, an increase of 8,500 from the previous week's revised average. Last week's average was revised down by 500 from 1,788,750 to 1,788,250.
Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
Exelon Corporation (EXC) : Free Stock Analysis Report
NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA) : Free Stock Analysis Report
