U.S. Stocks Trend Lower and Treasury Yields Advance

Barry Adams
09 Jan, 2024
New York City

U.S. stocks turned lower after a day of sharp gains when investors searched for bargains in the tech sector.

Benchmark indexes rested in early trading, and mega-cap tech stocks hovered near their recent highs after the S&P 500 index added more than 1.4% and the Nasdaq Composite advanced about 2.2% in the previous session.

Investors shifted their attention to two key inflation measures scheduled to be released later in the week.

The December reading of the consumer price index is scheduled to be released on Thursday, followed by the producer price index on Friday.

Investors are hoping that both measures will show a cooling of inflation on a monthly basis, supporting the case for the Federal Reserve to lower the rate sooner than expected.

 

U.S. Indexes and Yields

The S&P 500 index decreased 0.4% to 4,781.75, and the Nasdaq Composite increased 0.5% to 14,534.17.

The yield on 2-year Treasury notes decreased to 4.38%, 10-year Treasury notes held steady at 4.04%, and 30-year Treasury bonds rose to 4.20%.

WTI crude oil decreased $1.60 to $72.37 a barrel, and natural gas prices decreased 5 cents to $3.02 a thermal unit.

Gold increased $7.38 to $2,035.08 an ounce, and investors debated the future interest rate path.

The dollar index, which weighs the U.S. dollar against a basket of foreign currencies, edged lower to 102.37.

 

U.S. Stock Movers

Juniper Networks rose 24% to $37.50 on a report that Hewlett-Packard Enterprise is in "advanced talks" to acquire the company in a $13 billion deal.

The news was first reported by the Wall Street Journal and could not be independently verified.

The acquisition between the two companies could be finalized as early as this week, the Journal reported.

Unity Software increased 2.9% to $39.95 after the company said it plans to lay off about 25%, or 1,800, of its workforce as a part of the company's restructuring plan.

Microchip Technology declined 2.9% to $83.10 after the company lowered its fiscal third quarter revenue outlook, citing a "weakening economic environment."

The company said revenue in the quarter is likely to decline sequentially by 22% compared to the previous estimate released on November 2, 2023, of a decline between 15% and 20%.

Jet Blue Airways fell 5% to $5.47, and the company said President and Chief Operating Officer Joanna Geraghty will replace Chief Executive Robin Hayes effective February 12.