In the early session, stocks showed little direction, and this lackluster performance has persisted into Wednesday afternoon trading. Major indices have hovered around the unchanged mark for most of the day.
At present, the Nasdaq is up a marginal 1.04 points to 16,833.66, the S&P 500 has edged down 1.40 points to 5,320.01, and the Dow has dipped 30.68 points to 39,842.31—all movements representing less than a tenth of a percent.
The choppy trading can be attributed to traders' hesitance as they await quarterly results from Nvidia (NVDA), expected to post significant earnings and revenue growth after today's market close. Market participants are also cautious ahead of the Federal Reserve's latest monetary policy meeting minutes, set to be released this afternoon. These minutes could influence interest rate expectations, especially following recent Fed comments suggesting that higher rates may persist longer than previously anticipated. The CME Group's FedWatch Tool indicates a now 72.4 percent likelihood of rate cuts by September, down from close to 90 percent last week.
On the corporate front, Target (TGT) shares have fallen sharply following first-quarter earnings that fell short of analyst predictions. Telehealth company Hims & Hers Health (HIMS) is also under pressure after Citi downgraded its stock to Neutral from Buy. Conversely, Analog Devices (ADI) has surged after reporting better-than-expected fiscal second-quarter results, and Shopify (SHOP) has also risen following an upgrade from Goldman Sachs to Buy from Neutral.
Sector-wise, gold stocks have notably declined, dragging the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index down by 2.7 percent, in response to a $29 drop in gold prices to $2,396.90 per ounce. Oil service stocks are also weak, with the Philadelphia Oil Service Sector Index falling 2.5 percent amid declining crude oil prices. Additionally, a report of unexpectedly lower existing home sales has negatively impacted housing stocks, as shown by the Philadelphia Housing Sector Index’s 1.8 percent loss. Brokerage and oil producer stocks are also weak, while biotechnology and semiconductor stocks have made noticeable gains.
International markets have also been generally lower. On Wednesday, Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell by 0.9 percent, and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index edged down by 0.1 percent. In Europe, the German DAX Index dropped by 0.3 percent, with the French CAC 40 Index and the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index both falling by 0.6 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries have recovered from initial weakness to near the unchanged line. Consequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note has inched up by less than a basis point, currently standing at 4.420 percent.
