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US equity markets retreated after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell failed to reassure investors that the central bank would keep surging bond yields and inflation expectations in check – Dow settled -346-points or -1.11% lower (at 30,924.14) after tumbling as much as -700-points earlier in the session. Home Depot Inc (down -2.5%) and Intel Corp (-2.62%) were among the biggest drags on the index. The broader S&P500 fell -1.34% (to 3,768.47), paring an earlier -2.5% decline. Information Technology (down 2.26%), Materials (-2.06%) and Consumer Discretionary (-2.02%) all fell over >2% and led nine of the eleven primary sectors lower. Energy remained atop the primary sector leaderboard with a +2.47% gain. Exxon Mobil Corp rose +3.87% after the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the energy major, Darren Woods, reiterated the company’s commitment to its dividend. Apple Inc (down -1.58%), Tesla Inc (-4.86%) and PayPal Holdings Inc (-6.27%) were among the largest individual drags on the index. Both the Dow and S&P500 logged their first settlement below their respective 50-day moving averages (30,944.98 and 3,818.61) in over a month The Nasdaq shed -2.11% and fell into negative territory for the calendar year-to-date (down -1.28%). The technology-centric benchmark settled -9.7% below its record closing high on 12 February and fell into correction territory on an intraday basis, down more than 10% from its most recent 52-week high. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 lost -2.76%.

A fresh rise in Treasury yields weighed heavily on technology stocks and dragged the benchmark US equity indices lower – Dow down -121-points or -0.39%, settling near its session low. The broader S&P500 fell -1.31% with Information Technology (down -2.49%) and Consumer Discretionary (-2.38%) both down over >2% and leading eight of the eleven primary sectors lower. Energy (up +1.43%) and Financials (+0.75%) were the leading primary sector performers. The S&P 500 financial and industrial sector indexes touched intra-day record highs. Just five companies - Apple Inc (down -2.45%), Amazon.com Inc (-2.89%), Microsoft Corp (-2.70%), Google-parent Alphabet Inc (-2.37%) and Tesla (-4.84%) – accounted for almost half the S&P500’s decline. Exxon Mobil Corp rose +0.8% after the oil major unveiled plans to grow dividends and curb spending with projections that were less bold than previous years at the company’s Investor Day. The Nasdaq dropped -2.70%, paring its year-to-date gains to +0.85%. Netflix Inc shed -4.95%. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 index lost -1.06%.

US equity markets weaker after making a very strong start to March – Dow down -144-points or -0.46%. The broader S&P500 lost -0.81% a day after recording the best single-session performance since 5 June last year. Information Technology (down -1.35%) and Consumer Discretionary (-1.27%) were the worst-performing primary sectors with falls of over >2%, while Materials (up +0.58%) was the only primary sector to advance. The Nasdaq dropped -1.69%, with Apple Inc (-2.09%) and Facebook Inc (-2.23%) both down over >2% . The small capitalisation Russell 2000 index lost -1.93%. Lyft Inc rose +3.8% in extended trading after the company said it had its best week in terms of ridesharing volume since pandemic lockdowns began last year. Lyft also said it expects a narrower earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) loss for the first quarter than it previously forecast.

US equity markets made a strong start to March, buoyed by data showing that the manufacturing sector continues to gather steam and with the recent volatility on Treasury markets dying down – Dow gained +603-points or +1.95%, and booking its best daily gain since November last year. Boeing Co (up +5.84%) led the advance, with United Airlines Holdings Inc (+1.20%) said it is buying 25 additional 737 Max planes and taking delivery of other orders earlier than previously planned. The broader S&P500 rallied +2.38%, logging its best single session performance since 5 June last year. Information Technology (up +3.18%) and Financials (+3.12%) gained over >3% to lead all eleven primary sectors higher. Royal Caribbean Ltd fell 2.06% after the cruise operator said it has commenced a US$1.5B public stock offering. The Nasdaq jumped +3.01% to settle with its best single session advance since 4 November. Apple Inc gained +5.37% after all 270 of its stores in the U.S. were open to the public for the first time since last March. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 index jumped +3.43%, recording its sharpest daily percentage gain since 6 January.

US equity markets retreated as investors struggled to shake off concerns around the rapid jump in Treasury yields despite the Personal Consumption Expenditure (PCE) index - the Federal Reserve’s preferred measure of inflation - indicating subdued inflation in January – Dow dropped -470-points or -1.50% (to 30,932.37), dropping back below 1% The small capitalisation Russell 2000 index inched +0.04% higher.

US equity markets staged another intra-day comeback to settle with solid gains as investors continued to buy companies leveraged to an economic rebound – Dow rose +425-points or +1.35% to 31,961.86. Boeing Co jumped 8.1%, while Chevron Corp climbed 3.7%. Goldman Sachs and Visa Inc both rose more than >3%. The broader S&P500 rose +1.14%, recovering from an earlier -0.6% decline. Energy (up +3.64%) was once again the leading primary sector performer, while Financials (+2.01%), Industrials (+1.93%) and Information (+1.51%) also traded strongly. Utilities and Consumer Staples (-0.03%) were the only primary sectors to close in the red. Tesla Inc rose +6.2% after Ark Invest increased their stake in the electric vehicle maker. Johnson and Johnson rose +1.34% after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said that the pharmaceutical company’s COVID-19 vaccine met the requirements for emergency use authorisation. The Nasdaq rose +0.99%, erasing an earlier -1.3% fall. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 index jumped +2.38%.

US equity markets settled with modest gains after staging a big intra-day recovering following Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s dovish congressional testimony that relieved some concerns around higher interest rates and inflation – Dow eked out a +15-point or +0.05% gain, erasing an earlier decline of over >360-points. The broader S&P500 added +0.13%, recovering from an earlier -1.8% drop. Energy (up +1.61%) once again sat atop the primary sector leaderboard and led seven of the eleven primary sectors higher. Consumer Discretionary (down -0.49%) and Information Technology (-0.25%) were the worst performing sectors. Tesla Inc settled -2.2% lower and moved into negative territory for the year, dropping as much as -13% earlier in the session. The Nasdaq lost -0.52%, paring an earlier 3.9% decline that saw the technology-centric index fall below its 50-day moving average for the first time since 3 November last year. Apple Inc dipped -0.11% after sliding as much as -6% earlier in the session hosted their annual shareholders meeting The small capitalisation Russell 2000 index fell -0.88%.

US equity markets weaker as rising Treasury yields and inflationary concerns weighed on some high-flying growth stocks – Dow added +27-points or +0.09%. Disney jumped 4.4%, while industrial giant Caterpillar and chemicals company Dow Inc. both climbed more than 3.5%. American Express and Chevron gained 3.2% and 2.7%, respectively The broader S&P500 fell 0.77%, with Information Technology (down -2.26%) and Consumer Discretionary (-2.15%) the worst performing sectors with declines of over >2%, while Energy (up +3.47%) returned to the top of the primary sector leaderboard.. Tesla Inc dropped -8.55%, the biggest single session fall for the electric vehicle maker’s stock since 23 September, 2020. Some linked the decline to the ~6% decline in Bitcoin overnight, with Tesla disclosing earlier this month that it had acquired US$1.5B of the digital currency for “more flexibility to further diversify and maximize returns on our cash.” Airline stocks rebounded, buoyed by an upgrade to several carriers by Deutsche Bank. American Airlines Group jumped +9.42% The Nasdaq dropped -2.44%, with Apple Inc (-2.98%), Amazon.com Inc (-2.13%) and Microsoft Corp (-2.68%) all dropping at least -2%. However, Oracle Corp rallied +5.43% following a positive story in Barron’s that suggested it could be the next longstanding technology company to transform like Adobe Inc (down -2.46%), Autodesk Inc (-2.52%) and Microsoft, which changed up their business models to embrace cloud-based services over traditional licensed software, and saw their stocks rise as a result. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 index fell -0.69%.

US equity markets settled little changed on Friday night AEST (19 February) as investors continued to rotate out of technology stocks and into cyclical stocks seen as likely to benefit from pent up demand once the COVID-19 pandemic is subdued and the economy re-opens – Dow settled flat after touching a fresh record intra-day high (31,647.53). The broader S&P500 slipped -0.19%, turning negative in the final minutes of the session and extending its decline into a fourth straight session and marking the index’s longest losing streak in two months. Utilities (down -1.51%), Consumer Staples (-1.23%), Health Care (-1.15%) and Communication Services (-1.07%) all logged falls of over >1%, offsetting gains of over >1% for all of Materials (up +1.85%), Energy (+1.64%), Industrials (+1.60%) and Financials (+1.16%). The Nasdaq inched +0.07% higher although much of the FAANG complex weaker (Facebook Inc down -2.91%, Amazon.com Inc -2.35%, Netflix Inc -1.46% and Google parent Alphabet Inc -0.76%). Apple Inc (up +0.12%) edged higher for the first time in four sessions. Applied Materials Inc gained +5.32% after the chip-industry supplier reported better-than-expected fiscal first-quarter adjusted earnings per share and revenue of US$5.16B after the close of last Thursday’s (18 February) session, with Chief Executive Officer Gary Dickerson observing that there is “strong momentum across the company. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 index jumped +2.18%.