Wall Street’s main stock index ended mixed on Tuesday as more big companies reported earnings for the final three months of 2022 amid lingering concerns about a possible recession.
The Standard & Poor’s 500 fell less than 0.1%, its second drop in three trading days. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.3% and the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.3%. Small business stocks also fell, with the Russell 2000 index down 0.3% of him.
The fall in major indices marks a reversal from Monday, when tech-led gains offset last week’s decline in the S&P 500.
Stocks volatile as investors try to better understand how inflation is affecting the economy, the likelihood of a recession and whether the Federal Reserve can ease aggressive rate hikes It is
The latest earnings show companies continue to struggle with the effects of inflation on consumers and supply chains.
Sticky note and industrial paint maker 3M fell 6.2%, the biggest drop among the S&P 500 stocks. After reporting weak fourth quarter earnings and announcing job cuts. The company is the latest company to announce layoffs as consumers are weighed down by inflation and fears of a sharp drop in spending and the possibility of an economic recession grow.
Union Pacific fell 3.3% after reporting disappointing earnings and earnings.
Microsoft rose 4% in after-hours trading after the software and technology giant reported earnings that beat Wall Street estimates. It closed 0.2% lower in normal trading.
Overall, the S&P 500 fell 2.86 points to 4,016.95. The Nasdaq dropped his 30.14 points to close at 11,334.27 and the Dow added his 104.40 points to finish at 33,733.96.
The Russell 2000 Index of Small Businesses fell 5.16 points (0.3%) to close at 1,885.61.
US oil prices fell 1.8%.
The New York Stock Exchange temporarily halted trading in more than a dozen companies as stock prices fluctuated wildly shortly after the market opened due to apparent technical problems. Stocks of companies such as Morgan Stanley, Wells Fargo and AT&T soared at the start of trading, halting trading. Revised price after trading resumed. The New York Stock Exchange says it is investigating “reported issues” and all systems are now operational.
Markets vacillate between hope and caution as investors wait to see if the Fed will adjust its inflation policy. The central bank has already raised the main overnight rate from virtually zero early last year to he range of 4.25% to 4.5%.
The Fed announced its next rate hike on February 1, with traders expecting a rate hike of a quarter of a percentage point, signaling a softening of the central bank’s pace.
“At the moment, the market and the Fed have some pretty intense disagreements about how long they plan to keep rates around 5%,” he said. Scott Ladner, Chief Investment Officer at Horizon Investments, said:
Yields on long-term government bonds fell. Yields on 10-year government bonds, which affect mortgage rates, fell to 3.46% from 3.52% late Monday.
Wall Street gets several economic updates this week that could provide more insight into the impact of inflation.
The government will release fourth-quarter gross domestic product data on Thursday. Economists expect growth of less than 1%, following his 1.9% growth in the third quarter and his contraction in the first half of 2022. Investors will get an update on their personal spending and income on Friday.
AP Business Writers Elaine Kurtenbach and Matt Ott contributed to this report.
