The Dow Jones Industrial Average traded slightly lower on Tuesday as the major indexes pulled back in the wake of hawkish comments made by a Federal Reserve governor.
X
In afternoon trading, the Dow Jones industrials were down around 0.2% while the Nasdaq declined 1.8%, leading on the downside. The S&P 500 fell 0.7% while the Russell 2000 lost 1.3%. Volume was running lower on the Nasdaq and higher on the NYSE vs. the same time on Monday.
Investors weighed hawkish commentary made by Federal Reserve Governor Lael Brainard, who said that policymakers were ready to be aggressive with balance-sheet reduction to help curb inflation. “I think we can all absolutely agree inflation is too high and bringing inflation down is of paramount importance,” Brainard said at a conference at the Minneapolis Fed.
Meanwhile, the Institute for Supply Management’s services index for March came in at 58.3, in line with forecasts. It’s an improvement from 56.5 the previous month in the index, which surveys more than 375 service-providing firms in 16 industries.
U.S. Stock Market Today Overview |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Index | Symbol | Price | Gain/Loss | % Change |
| Dow Jones | (0DJIA) | 34856.74 | -65.14 | -0.19 |
| S&P 500 | (0S&P5) | 4552.17 | -30.47 | -0.66 |
| Nasdaq | (0NDQC ) | 14276.15 | -256.40 | -1.76 |
| Russell 2000 | (IWM) | 205.08 | -2.83 | -1.36 |
| IBD 50 | (FFTY) | 38.19 | -1.06 | -2.70 |
| Last Update: 1:40 PM ET 4/5/2022 | ||||
Dow Jones Today
Among Dow Jones leaders, Boeing (BA) and Salesforce.com (CRM) dragged on the downside with losses of over 3.5% each.
On the upside, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) rose 1.3% and traded inside the buy zone from a 173.72 double-bottom base. UnitedHealth Group (UNH) led the upside with a gain of nearly 3%. Shares traded near the upper edge of the buy zone from a 501.03 double bottom.
The indexes have rallied considerably from their lows in early March, when the new uptrend began. Last week, indexes pulled back to digest the powerful gains. It seems this week that indexes’ sideways action is continuing.
The Nasdaq remains below resistance at its 200-day line, while both the Dow Jones and S&P 500 remain above this level.
Meanwhile, the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note rose over 5 basis points to 2.54%. Oil traded flat, with West Texas Intermediate crude trading around $103 per barrel after rising over 4% to this level on Monday.
The S&P 500 sectors traded mixed. On the downside, consumer discretionary and technology stocks lost 1.5% or more. Utilities, real estate and health care — all defensive categories — led the upside with gains of more than 1%.
Growth stocks were getting hammered with the Innovator IBD 50 ETF (FFTY), a benchmark for growth stocks, showing losses of around 2.6% on Tuesday.
Twitter Stock Pops On Elon Musk News
Twitter (TWTR) pared earlier gains to 3% in afternoon trading after the social media company said Tesla (TSLA) CEO Elon Musk will join its board of directors. The news follows Monday’s disclosure that Musk acquired a 9.2% stake in Twitter.
Twitter shares soared over 27% in very heavy volume on Monday, nearly reclaiming the 200-day line for the first time since Oct. 22. This was the largest single-day gain in the company’s history. While TWTR briefly reclaimed this area of support Tuesday, the stock ultimately fell back below it in afternoon trading.
Meanwhile, Tesla stock fell 2.3% as it works on a cup base with a 1,208.10 buy point.
Follow Rachel Fox on Twitter at @IBD_RFox for more Dow Jones and stock market commentary.
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