US stock market news: Dow jumps nearly 100-points, Nasdaq down almost 0.5%
The Dow closed in positive territory with economically sensitive sectors such as industrials, materials and transport providing a boost, while tech and tech-adjacent megacap stocks pulled the Nasdaq to a lower close.
US stock markets ended mixed on Tuesday, losing steam late in the session as investors awaited crucial inflation data and the unofficial kick-off of the first-quarter reporting season.
The Dow closed in positive territory with economically sensitive sectors such as industrials, materials and transport providing a boost, while tech and tech-adjacent megacap stocks pulled the Nasdaq to a lower close.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) rose 98.27 points, or 0.29 per cent, to 33,684.79; the S&P 500 (.SPX) lost 0.17 points, essentially flat, at 4,108.94; and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) dropped 52.48 points, or 0.43 per cent, to 12,031.88.
With a lack of market-moving catalysts, investors looked ahead to Wednesday's consumer price index (CPI) for any evidence that the long, slow inflation cooldown continues.
On a monthly basis, analysts see the headline and core CPI cooling to 0.2 per cent and 0.4 per cent, respectively, according to a Reuters report.
But year-on-year, while consensus estimates call for a significant drop in the headline number - to 5.2 per cent from 6 per cent - the core measure, which strips out volatile food and energy prices, is expected to gain heat, rising to 5.6 per cent from 5.5 per cent.
As inflation slowly cools to the Fed's average annual 2% target, market participants are banking on a 67% likelihood of another 25-basis point interest rate hike at the conclusion of its May monetary policy meeting, according to CME's FedWatch tool, the report noted.
Beyond CPI, investors are eyeing the first-quarter reporting season, which surges from the starting gate on Friday with results from three major banks, Citigroup Inc (C.N), JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N) and Wells Fargo & Co (WFC.N).
Advancing issues outnumbered decliners on the NYSE by a 3.04-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.49-to-1 ratio favored advancers.
The S&P 500 posted nine new 52-week highs and no new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 64 new highs and 118 new lows.
Volume on US exchanges was 9.84 billion shares, compared with the 11.95 billion average over the last 20 trading days.
With Reuters Inputs
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