Stock Market Update

[BRIEFING.COM] Today's trade started somewhat mixed. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite have traded lower through the entire session, weighed down by mega cap losses, but the Dow Jones Industrial Average was trading up and there were indications of buying activity under the index surface.

The vibe quickly shifted, however, and robust retreat started in response to reports that auto tariffs could be announced today, according to Bloomberg. Shares of General Motors (GM 52.35, -0.24, -0.5%), Ford (F 10.25, -0.06, -0.6%), and Stellantis (STLA 12.25, -0.15, -1.2%) turned sharply lower in response. 

Mega caps also built on early declines, putting added pressure on the broader equity market and driving major indices to session lows. NVIDIA (NVDA 113.65, -7.06, -5.8%) is a major laggard amid reports that the U.S. has placed more than 50 Chinese companies on a blacklist of export restrictions for advanced computing capabilities; meanwhile, FT is reporting that Chinese environmental regulations could hurt NVIDIA's sales in the country.

The relative weakness in the mega cap space is a continuation of price action that has plagued the market since the start of the year. The Vanguard Mega Cap Growth ETF (MGK) is sitting on a 6.9% decline in 2025. The "rest" of the equity market has held up better despite ongoing uncertainty about growth and trade policy. As a result, the equal-weighted S&P 500 shows a 0.2% decline since the start of the year.

The S&P 500 information technology sector (-2.3%) is the worst performer today by a wide margin, feeling the weight of NVIDIA, Apple (AAPL 222.52, -1.22, -0.5%), and Microsoft (MSFT 392.02, -3.14, -0.8%). The communication services (-1.6%) and consumer discretionary (-1.5%) sectors, which also house mega cap components, are the next worst performers. 

Reviewing today's economic data:

• Weekly MBA Mortgage Applications Index -2.0%; Prior -6.2%
• February Durable Orders 0.9% (Briefing.com consensus -1.2%); Prior was revised to 3.3% from 3.1%, February Durable Goods - ex transportation 0.7% (Briefing.com consensus 0.1%); Prior was revised to 0.1% from 0.0%
  • The key takeaway from the report is that durable goods orders were stronger than expected; however, that understanding was clouded by the added realization that there was a downturn in business spending, evidenced by the 0.3% decline in nondefense capital goods orders, excluding aircraft.