US stocks regained some ground on Tuesday but remained negative as technology stocks continued to struggle. The Nasdaq plummeted 260.54 points or 1.4 percent to a three-month closing low of 19,026.39, while the S&P 500 slid 28.00 points or 0.5 percent to a one-month closing low of 5,955.25. Nvidia’s slump by 2.8 percent ahead of its fourth quarter results added to the selling pressure.
Economists expressed concerns about consumer confidence following a Conference Board report that showed a significant deterioration in US consumer confidence in February. The index fell to 98.3 from an upwardly revised 105.3 in January, with economists expecting a dip to 103.0. Stephanie Guichard, Senior Economist at The Conference Board, noted the index’s largest monthly decline since August 2021.
The decline was attributed to higher inflation expectations, which surged from 5.2 percent to 6 percent in February. Semiconductor stocks and computer hardware and software stocks were hit hard, contributing to the Nasdaq’s downward trend. Other markets also saw weakness, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index slumping by 1.4 percent and China’s Shanghai Composite Index sliding by 0.8 percent.
The bond market saw treasuries move sharply higher, extending a recent upward trend. The yield on the benchmark ten-year note tumbled 9.5 basis points to a two-month closing low of 4.298 percent. A report on new home sales is due out on Wednesday, and investors will be watching for data later in the week.
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Source: https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/nasdaq-tumbles-three-month-closing-low-tech-stocks-slump