U.S. Stock Indexes struggled for direction
On Monday, U.S. stock indexes struggled for direction as attention shifted to Tuesday’s midterm elections, which will determine who controls Congress. However, shares of Meta Platforms rose on news that Facebook was cutting jobs (NASDAQ:META).
Analysts predict a split government with Republicans winning the House of Representatives and possibly the Senate, which could hinder Democratic President Joe Biden’s agenda. Republicans have gained ground in polls.
In point of fact, that entails no significant adjustments to the tax code, regulations, or policy initiatives. That truly is a no-news-is-good-news environment for stocks, as you don’t always get anything done.
The U.S. consumer prices data for October, which are scheduled to be released on Thursday, will also be the focus of attention to determine whether the rapid interest rate hikes initiated by the Federal Reserve are contributing to the economy’s cooling down.
Despite new data showing another month of robust job gains and only small signs of progress in lowering inflation, four Fed policymakers said on Friday they would still consider a smaller rate hike at their next policy meeting.
The probability of a 50-basis point rate increase at the December meeting of the U.S. central bank is currently 61%, according to traders. All things considered, monetary policy is poised to have a negative effect on the economy heading into 2023,” regardless of whether the terminal rate is set at 4.5 percent, 5 percent, or higher.
This year, all three major U.S. indexes have fallen, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq down 33.1 percent due to concerns that aggressive monetary policy tightening could send the economy into a recession.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 149.04 points, or 0.46 percent, at 32,552.26, the S&P 500 was up 2.35 points, or 0.06%, at 3,772.90, and the Nasdaq Composite was down 20.54 points, or 0.20 percent, at 10,454.72. At 11:46 a.m. ET, all three of these indexes were higher.
A report that the company was planning to begin large-scale layoffs this week saw Meta Platforms Inc. gain 5.4%.This year, the stock has lost more than 71% of its value.
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: ) is weighing in on the tech-heavy Nasdaq. After the company stated that it anticipated lower than anticipated shipments of premium iPhone 14 models, the stock (AAPL) fell 1.2%.
As former US President Donald Trump suggested that he might run for president again, Digital World Acquisition Corp. saw a 21% increase. Trump Media & Technology Group Corp., a social media startup, has agreed to be listed on the stock market.
Alliance of Walgreens and Boots (NASDAQ:WBA) Inc. gained 4.8 percent when Village MD, a pharmacy chain-backed primary care provider, announced that it would acquire Summit Health in a deal worth nearly $9 billion.
On the NYSE and the Nasdaq, the ratio of advancing issues to decliners was 1.14 to 1, while the ratio on the Nasdaq was 1.02 to 1.The Nasdaq saw 58 new highs and 145 new lows, while the S&P index saw 15 new 52-week highs and 11 new lows.
