Stock Market Update

[BRIEFING.COM] Today's trade features mixed action at the index level. The S&P 500 (+0.4%) and Nasdaq Composite (+0.7%) have traded higher while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (-0.2%) and Russell 2000 (-0.4%) trade lower. 

Gains in the mega caps and chipmakers have led the S&P 500 and Nasdaq to trade higher, but the vibe under the index surface is negative. Decliners lead advancers by a 3-to-2 margin at the NYSE and by a 4-to-3 ratio at the Nasdaq.

NVIDIA (NVDA 138.41, +3.70, +2.8%), Amazon.com (AMZN 226.15, +1.25, +0.6%), Meta Platforms (META 598.12, +12.75, +2.2%), and Broadcom (AVGO 231.67, +11.46, +5.2%) are influential standouts in the mega cap and semiconductor spaces.

The Vanguard Mega Cap Growth ETF (MGK) shows a 0.7% gain and the PHLX Semiconductor Index (SOX) trades 2.7% higher. 

Qualcomm (QCOM 157.37, +4.48, +2.9%) is also a winning standout in the SOX after jurors found that the chip company didn't violate terms of its agreement covering Arm Holding's (ARM 127.73, -4.42, -3.4%) designs.

Eli Lilly (LLY 780.08, +12.32, +1.6%) is another story stock, trading up along with other mega cap names after news that the FDA approved Zepbound (tirzepatide) as the first and only prescription medicine for moderate-to-severe obstructive sleep apnea in adults with obesity.

Competitor in the weight-loss drug space, Novo Nordisk A/S (NVO 86.16, +1.16, +1.3%), also trades up today. The S&P 500 health care sector trades 0.5% higher than its prior close. LLY is a sector component, but NVO is not.

The information technology (+0.9%) and communication services (+1.0%) sectors are among the top performers. On the flip side, the consumer staples sector (-1.2%) shows the largest decline.

Rising market rates have contributed to the underlying negative bias in equities. The 10-yr yield is up six basis points to 4.58% and the 2-yr yield is up three basis points to 4.34%.

Reviewing today's economic data:

• November Durable Orders -1.1% (Briefing.com consensus -0.3%); Prior was revised to 0.8% from 0.2%, November Durable Goods -ex transportation -0.1% (Briefing.com consensus 0.3%); Prior was revised to 0.2% from 0.1%
  • The key takeaway from the report is that it showed a rebound in business spending in November, evidenced by a 0.7% increase in new orders for nondefense capital goods excluding aircraft -- a proxy for business spending -- following a 0.1% decline in October.
• December Consumer Confidence 104.7 (Briefing.com consensus 113.5); Prior was revised to 112.8 from 111.7
  • The key takeaway from the report is that consumers were substantially less optimistic about future business conditions and incomes than they were last month.
• November New Home Sales 664K (Briefing.com consensus 670K); Prior was revised to 627K from 610K
  • The key takeaway from the report is that new home sales, which are tabulated when contracts are signed, increased in November with the help of lower selling prices that were needed to help offset affordability constraints driven by rising mortgage rates.