Benzinga - by Piero Cingari, Benzinga Staff Writer.
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. (NASDAQ:TSLA) being the sole exception, maintaining a flat performance for the day.
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) took a notable hit, tumbling by 3%, marking its most challenging session since early September, following a downgrade from Barclays. NVIDIA Corp. (NASDAQ:NVDA) and other semiconductor stocks, tracked by the iShares Semiconductor ETF (NASDAQ: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 (CRYPTO: BTC) 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
| Russell 2000 | 2,050.18 | 0.3% |
| Dow Jones | 37,737.65 | 0.1% |
| S&P 500 | 4,747.50 | -0.5% |
| Nasdaq 100 | 16,586.14 | -1.4% |
The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) was 0.4% lower to $473.11, the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF (NYSE:DIA) was 0.2% higher and the Invesco QQQ Trust (NASDAQ:QQQ) fell 1.4% to $403.81, according to Benzinga Pro data.
Sector-wise, the Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLV) outperformed, up by 1.3%. The Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLK) lagged behind, down 2.4%.
Among industries, biotech-linked stocks outperformed, with the iShares Biotechnology ETF (NYSE:IBB) up 2.3%. Semiconductors sank, with the VanEck Semiconductors ETF (NYSE:SMH) falling 2.2%.
Tuesday’s Stock Movers
- Moderna Inc. (NASDAQ: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 (NASDAQ: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. (NYSE:NCLH) down 6.4%, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) down 5.1%, SentinelOne Inc. (NYSE:S) down 5.8%, Maravai Lifesciences Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:MRVI) up 7.6%.
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