Stock Market Update: S&P 500 Falls 0.5%, Dow Jones Rises 0.5%, Nasdaq Drops 1.3%
At closing, the broad S&P 500 was down 0.5% to 5,436, while counting from the Stockholm Stock Exchange closing, the index declined by 0.1%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average strengthened by 0.5% to 40,743, while the technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite dropped by 1.3% to 17,147.
On the American macro front, home prices in 20 major cities across the US rose by 6.8% in May compared to the same month in 2023, according to the S&P Corelogic Case-Shiller index. The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) also reported an increase in home prices compared to the same month last year, up by 5.7%. However, home prices remained unchanged in May compared to the previous month, according to FHFA.
Investors are cautious ahead of Wednesday’s interest rate decision from the Federal Reserve (Fed), which is expected to remain unchanged but signal a rate cut in September.
Among individual companies, cybersecurity firm Crowdstrike weakened by 9.7%. CNBC reported that Delta Airlines has hired legal counsel to seek damages from both Crowdstrike and Microsoft following the software update that caused major disruptions, including in air traffic, earlier in July.
IT conglomerate Microsoft, which will report for its fourth quarter in the fiscal year after the market closes, was down by 1.0%.
Furthermore, there were clear declines in the semiconductor sector. Nvidia, Broadcom, and Qualcomm fell by 4.4-7.0%. Semiconductor manufacturer AMD will report for its second quarter after market close. The stock was down by 0.9%.
Pharmaceutical company Merck fell by 9.8%. The company reported slightly better-than-expected results for its second quarter but fell short of expectations for the full year forecast.
On the positive side, sector peer Pfizer added 2.2%. The pharmaceutical company beat quarterly expectations and has raised its full-year forecast.
Consumer goods group Procter & Gamble lost 4.8% after a report that was received negatively.
Fintech company Paypal reported above analysts’ expectations and has raised its earnings per share forecast for the full year. The stock rose by 8.6%.
Warren Buffett, through his investment company, has reduced his stake in Bank of America for the ninth consecutive day, according to CNBC.