Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., October 27, 2023. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo Acquire License Rights
- Retailers in the spotlight on Cyber Monday
- Crown Castle rises as Elliott pushes for change
- Indices: Dow down 0.13%, S&P down 0.06%, Nasdaq up 0.17%
NEW YORK, Nov 27 (Reuters) – There was a mixed mood on Wall Street on Monday as investors took a post-Thanksgiving pause ahead of key economic data releases, while the holiday shopping season got into full swing and retailers sought to woo bargain hunters with cyber Monday offers to attract.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq was slightly higher, the Dow was trending lower and the S&P 500 was essentially flat but trending lower.
Cyber Monday online shopping deals are expected to entice shoppers to spend a record $12 billion, according to Adobe Analytics. This is the latest positive sign for the health of the American consumer, whose spending accounts for about 70% of U.S. GDP.
The S&P 500 Retail Index (.SPXRT) rose 0.9%.
“After four weeks of very strong and positive market activity, we are seeing investors take a little breather and focus on the data,” said Greg Bassuk, CEO of AXS Investments in New York. “This week, all eyes will be on additional inflation data as well as consumer confidence and spending to determine whether Main Street can keep up with Wall Street.”
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Consumer resilience and tightening labor markets amid signs of a weakening economy have many market watchers worried about the possibility that the Federal Reserve may have reached the end of its tightening cycle but is expected to keep restrictive interest rates in place for longer.
Financial markets have consolidated a 99.4 percent probability that the central bank will leave its key interest rate unchanged at next month’s meeting, with the possibility of a rate cut starting in mid-2024 gaining traction, according to CME’s FedWatch tool.
On the economic front, a sharper-than-expected decline in new home sales added to the subdued sentiment. Later in the week, market participants await the Commerce Department’s second assessment of third-quarter GDP, due on Wednesday. The comprehensive personal consumption expenditure (PCE) report follows on Friday.
Statements from Federal Reserve policymakers throughout the week will also be examined for clues about the duration of the central bank’s restrictive policies.
“Investors are looking for confirmation that not only have interest rates peaked, but more importantly, how quickly the Fed might begin cutting rates in 2024,” Bassuk added.
At 2:11 p.m. EST, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) fell 46.79 points, or 0.13%, to 35,343.36, and the S&P 500 (.SPX) fell 2.83 points, or 0.06%, to 4,556 .51 and the Nasdaq Composite (. IXIC) rose 24.35 points, or 0.17%, to 14,275.21.
Among the 11 major sectors in the S&P 500, real estate (.SPLRCR) and consumer discretionary (.SPLRCD) posted the largest percentage gains, while energy stocks (.SPNY) fell the most.
Amid the Cyber Monday excitement, Amazon.com (AMZN.O) rose 1.3% and Walmart (WMT.N) edged up 0.6%.
Affirm Holdings (AFRM.O) rose 11.0% as the payments platform’s buy now, pay later option hit an all-time high, boosting online holiday sales.
Online gifting platforms Etsy (ETSY.O) and Shopify rose 3.3% and 5.5%, respectively.
Meanwhile, Crown Castle International (CCI.N) rose 4.8% as activist investor Elliott Investment Management sought changes to the cell tower owner’s management and board.
GE HealthCare (GEHC.O) fell 3.4% after UBS downgraded the medical device maker’s shares to “sell” from “neutral.”
Declining issues outnumbered advancing issues on the NYSE by a ratio of 1.18 to 1; On the Nasdaq, a ratio of 1.35 to 1 favored the decliners.
The S&P 500 posted 34 new 52-week highs and no new lows; The Nasdaq Composite recorded 78 new highs and 64 new lows.
Reporting by Stephen Culp in New York. Additional reporting by Shristi Achar A and Amruta Khandekar in Bengaluru. Editing by Shinjini Ganguli and Matthew Lewis
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