HVA – The S&P 500 closed lower on Monday as major tech stocks fell ahead of key market-moving events this week, including an inflation update and comments from Federal Reserve officials. By 4 p.m. ET (20:00 GMT), the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 162 points, or 0.4%, the S&P 500 was down 0.3% and the NASDAQ Composite was lower by 0.3%.
Fed officials speak, inflation data. Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank President Raphael Bostic reiterated on Monday that he sees only one rate cut this week, adding that the strong economy allows the central bank to continue its cautious approach. Fed Governor Lisa Cook also reiterated the need to proceed with rate cuts carefully. The less dovish comments contrast with Fed Chair Powell's speech last week after the central bank signaled that three rate cuts were still on the table by 2024. The next Fed speech is later this week, with comments from Fed Governor Christopher Waller and Chairman Jerome Powell likely to attract much of the investor attention.
Personal consumption expenditure data, the Fed's preferred inflation gauge, is due out on Friday, when markets are closed for Good Friday. Traders now see a 75% chance of the Fed's first rate cut in June, up from around 55% early last week, according to the CME's interest rate tracker.
- Boeing (LON:SBA) rallies as CEO prepares to step down; United Airlines faces legal issues
- Boeing (NYSE:BA) shares rose 1.2% after the aircraft maker announced key management changes on Monday, with Dave Calhoun stepping down as CEO at the end of 2024.
- Shares of United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) fell 4.5% following the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration's move to increase oversight of the airline following a series of recent safety incidents.
- Super Micro Computer gives chip stocks a slight boost, Super Micro Computer Inc (NASDAQ:SMCI) rose more than 7% after JPMorgan initiated an outperform rating on the company with a price target of $1,150 amid optimism about rapidly growing server demand to support the AI revolution.
However, chip sentiment soured after China banned the use of Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) and AMD (NASDAQ:AMD) chips in government computers. In other tech news, Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), Alphabet Inc Class A (NASDAQ:GOOGL) and Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) were in the red after EU antitrust regulators launched an investigation into the tech giants for possible violations of the Digital Markets Act, which could result in hefty fines for the companies.
Disney gets a boost from Barclays; DWAC and Lucid rise. Walt Disney Co. (NYSE:DIS) rose more than 2% after Barclays upgraded the stock to outperform amid growing confidence that the entertainment giant’s earnings estimates have bottomed. Meanwhile, activist investor Nelson Peltz said he supports Disney CEO Bob Igor, despite calling board members’ “questionable strategic and capital allocation decisions,” as the proxy fight enters its final week, with ballots due on April 3.
Digital World Acquisition Corp. (NASDAQ:DWAC) surged more than $351T after the company officially completed its merger with former President Donald Trump's Trump Media & Technology Group Corp., the parent company of his Truth Social. Lucid Group Inc. (NASDAQ:LCID) surged more than $51T after the struggling electric vehicle maker secured much-needed financing, securing $1 billion from a subsidiary of Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund.
Energy stocks were boosted by higher oil prices. Oil prices settled higher on Monday, on growing expectations of tighter global crude supplies as Russia is expected to cut oil production as Ukraine continues attacks on its refineries. A reduction in tensions in the Israel-Hamas conflict could ease concerns about geopolitical instability in the oil-rich Middle East.
APA Corporation (NASDAQ:APA), Copper Futures, Coterra Energy Inc (NYSE:CTRA) were among the top gainers.
Source: Investing
