Washington, May 23, (dpa-AFX/GNA) – US stocks turned in a mixed performance on Monday with technology shares outperforming the broad market.
Investors largely refrained from making significant moves as they awaited updates on debt ceiling negotiations.
President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy are due to hold talks on raising the debt ceiling this evening. Treasury Secretary Yellen said on Sunday that the likelihood of the Treasury paying all US bills by June 15 is quite low.
Hawkish comments from a few Fed officials have raised concerns about outlook for interest rates. Federal Reserve Bank of St Louis President James Bullard said today that he backed two more increases. Federal Reserve of Minneapolis President Neel Kashkari said if the central bank does pause, it should signal tightening isn’t over.
Investors also seemed to wait for some key economic data this week. The report on personal income and spending, and the minutes of the Fed’s latest monetary policy meeting are due this week.
The major averages closed mixed. The Dow slipped after a slightly positive start but stayed weak right through the session and ended with a loss of 140.05 points or 0.42% at 33.286.58. The S&P 500 settled at 4,192.63, up 0.65 points or 0.02%, while the Nasdaq climbed 62.88 points or 0.5% to 12,720.78.
3M climbed about 2.75%. American Express, Intel, Microsoft, Walt Disney and United Health posted sharp to moderate gains. Nike drifted down nearly 4%. P&G, Coca-Cola and McDonalds ended lower by 2 to 2.6%. Chevron, Travelers Companies, J&J, Merck, Walmart, JP Morgan, Visa and Walgreens Boots Alliance lost 0.8 to 1.6%.
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly higher during trading on Monday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index advanced by 0.9%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index jumped by 1.2%.
Meanwhile, the major European markets ended mixed with investors largely making cautious moves, focusing on US debt ceiling talks.
The focus was also on Greek election results. Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis won the national election but failed to reach the majority.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 edged up 0.01%. The UK’s FTSE 100 climbed 0.18%, while Germany’s DAX and France’s CAC 40 shed 0.32% and 0.18%, respectively.
GNA