Tech Drags On Wall Street As 2024 Kicks Off; Dollar and Treasury Yields Surge: What's Driving Markets Tuesday?

Wall Street kicked off 2024 on a weaker note, with the S&P 500 dipping by 0.5%, and the Nasdaq 100 experiencing a 1.4% decline in midday trading in New York.

The tech sector played a notable role in dragging down the broader stock market performance. Interestingly, blue-chip and small-cap stocks managed to dodge substantial losses, showing marginal gains. Among the prominent “Magnificent Seven” stocks, six were in the red, with Tesla Inc. TSLA being the sole exception, maintaining a flat performance for the day.

Apple Inc. AAPL took a notable hit, tumbling by 3%, marking its most challenging session since early September, following a downgrade from Barclays. NVIDIA Corp. NVDA and other semiconductor stocks, tracked by the iShares Semiconductor ETF SOXX, also experienced a significant drop of 2.8% for the day.

This decline was triggered by a White House request to ASML Holdings N.V., Europe’s chip giant, to halt some product exports to China, just weeks before the planned restriction

The U.S. dollar displayed a robust surge, while Treasury yields moved higher by about seven basis points across the yield curve.

In the commodities market, oil had a volatile day, initially rising by as much as 3% before giving up those gains. Gold, on the other hand, remained steady, while silver saw a slight 0.4% dip. Furthermore, Bitcoin BTC/USD crossed the 45,000 mark, driven by growing optimism regarding the potential approval of a Bitcoin ETF by Jan. 10.

Tuesday's Performance In US Major Indices, ETFs

The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust SPY was 0.4% lower to $473.11, the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF DIA was 0.2% higher and the Invesco QQQ Trust QQQ fell 1.4% to $403.81, according to Benzinga Pro data.

Sector-wise, the Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund XLV outperformed, up by 1.3%. The Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund XLK lagged behind, down 2.4%.

Among industries, biotech-linked stocks outperformed, with the iShares Biotechnology ETF IBB up 2.3%. Semiconductors sank, with the VanEck Semiconductors ETF SMH falling 2.2%.

Tuesday’s Stock Movers

• Moderna Inc. MRNA rallied over 16%, on track for its best session since late 2022, after Oppenheimer upgrade the stock amid improved outlook in top-line sales.
• Rivian Automotive RIVN experienced a nearly 10% decline in its stock price as the company’s fourth-quarter deliveries fell below analyst estimates.
• Other notable movers included Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. NCLH down 6.4%, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. RCL down 5.1%, SentinelOne Inc. S down 5.8%, Maravai Lifesciences Holdings Inc. MRVI up 7.6%.

Read now: Semiconductor Stocks Tumble, Wiping Out $100 Billion Amid US-China Trade Tensions: Rocky Start To 2024

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