Benzinga - by Piero Cingari, Benzinga Staff Writer.
The U.S. stock market is steadily inching closer to the all-time highs achieved between late 2021 and early 2022, showing little concern for the possibility that disinflationary trends might have eased in November, just before a highly anticipated Federal Reserve meeting.
As of 1 p.m. in New York, the three major large-cap indices were trading in the green, while small caps were edging slightly lower.
In November, the annual inflation rate, as measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI), came in at 3.1%, slightly lower than the 3.2% seen in October but in line with estimates. On a monthly basis, inflation advanced at a 0.1% pace, slightly exceeding expectations of a flat reading. Core inflation remained stable at an annual rate of 4%, as expected, and the monthly reading was 0.3%, also in line with estimates.
The CBOE Volatility Index (VIX), often referred to as the market fear index, dropped below the 12-point mark, reaching its lowest level since January 2020.
The U.S. dollar index (DXY), closely tracked by the Invesco DB USD Index Bullish Fund ETF (NYSE:UUP), eased by 0.1%. Treasury yields remained mostly steady, with the 10-year benchmark hovering at a 4.24% yield.
Gold continued its decline by 0.2%, reaching $1,980 per ounce, while Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) fell by 1%, extending its weekly losses.
Oil prices continued to face significant downward pressure, with West Texas Intermediate (WTI) dropping to $68 a barrel, a level last seen in late June.
Tuesday Performance In Major US Indices, ETFs
| Nasdaq 100 | 16,266.14 | +0.3% |
| Dow Jones | 36,511.81 | +0.3% |
| S&P 500 | 4,628.90 | +0.1% |
| Russell 2000 | 1,875.40 | -0.4% |
The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) was 0.1% higher to $462.62, the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF (NYSE:DIA) rose 0.3% to $365.79 and the Invesco QQQ Trust (NASDAQ:QQQ) was 0.3% higher to $396.87, according to Benzinga Pro data.
Sector-wise, financials outperformed, with the Financials Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLF) up 0.6%. Energy was the laggard, pulled down by oil prices, with the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLE) down 1.9%.
Among industries, solar stocks continue to remain under pressure, with the Invesco Solar ETF (NYSE:TAN), tumbling 4.5%.
| Financials | +0.6% |
| Health Care | +0.4% |
| Materials | +0.2% |
| Technology | +0.2% |
| Industrials | +0.1% |
| Communications | +0.3% |
| Cons. Staples | +0.0% |
| Real Estate | +0.0% |
| Cons. Discretionary | -0.1% |
| Utilities | -0.4% |
| Energy | -1.9% |
Chart Of The Day: VIX Index Tumbles To Lowest Since January 2020
Stocks In Focus
- Lucid Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:LCID) fell about 9% following the company’s announcement of the resignation of its CFO.
- Oracle Corp. (NYSE:ORCL) slumped over 11% in reaction to its quarterly results.
- CAVA Group Inc. (NYSE:CAVA) rose over 15% on heavy trading volume Tuesday, with more than 11 million shares traded in the session.
- Maravai Life Sciences Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:MRVI) rose over 9%, after BofA Securities upgraded the stock from Neutral to Buy.
- Solar stocks including SolarEdge Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:SEDG), Enphase Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:ENPH) and First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) tumbled by 6.5%, 5.5% and 4.8%, respectively.
- Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI) plummeted 7% as the company missed both revenue and earnings forecasts in the past quarter.
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