The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained more than 0.1% to end at a new high of 41,240.52, while the S&P 500 slid 0.3% and the Nasdaq Composite dipped nearly 0.8%
The Dow Jones Industrial Average notched a record close on Monday while the other two major averages slipped as investors weighed the imminent arrival of interest rate cuts and braced for a busy week led by Nvidia’s earnings report.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) gained more than 0.1% to end at a new high of 41,240.52. The S&P 500 slid 0.3%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite dipped nearly 0.8%.
Technology lagged during the session as shares of AI chip giant Nvidia declined 2% along with semiconductor company Broadcom and EV maker Tesla.
Stocks are coming off weekly gains, notched after Chair Jerome Powell made it clear the Federal Reserve is ready to pivot to lowering rates in September. The major indexes all added more than 1% last week.
Markets quickly moved to price in cuts totalling 1% by the end of this year. But with only three Fed meetings left in the year — in September, November, and December — and the August jobs report still to come, Wall Street is wondering when and whether a 0.5% cut is likely.
Now, the focus is firmly on Nvidia’s earnings report — the key event of the week — which will likely determine whether the market mood stays upbeat. If the chipmaker’s results on Wednesday fail to meet high expectations, that could further dent the AI trade, which has powered stock gains, and, in turn, put the market’s bounce back from August lows to the test.
Also ahead is a Friday update on Fed policymakers’ preferred inflation gauge, the personal consumption expenditure index figure, which is likely to feed into rate-path calculations. Also on deck is a reading on second quarter GDP on Thursday.
