Here are today’s market moves:
S&P 500 down 0.44% to 3,913.97
Dow Jones down 0.38% to 31,493.34
Nasdaq down 0.72% to 13,856.36
Gold: $1,767
Bitcoin: $51,867
US10Y: 1.294%
What Happened?
Major indexes fell on Thursday as jobless claims data came in weaker than expected and stocks take a breather after rallying for most of 2021.
Last week, 861,000 workers sought unemployment benefits, a figure higher than analysts had expected.
Some analysts are concerned about lofty valuations and bubbles forming in parts of the market (cryptocurrency, cannabis, electric vehicles, SPACs, etc). Others, however, still see reasons to remain optimistic.
The bull thesis is that more fiscal stimulus, progress on vaccine distribution, and the reopening of the economy will help drive earnings in 2021.
The House Financial Services Committee questioned executives of Robinhood, Reddit, and Citadel (RoaringKitty was there too) today about the GameStop short squeeze last month.
What Else?
This Week
Monday: Presidents Day – Markets closed.
Tuesday: Earnings expected from CVS, Groupon, and Palantir.
Wednesday: Earnings expected from Shopify and Twilio; U.S. retail sales figures released; FOMC minutes from the January meeting are due.
Thursday: Earnings expected from Dropbox, Nestle, Roku, and Walmart; Weekly jobless claims.
Friday: Earnings expected from John Deere.