Here are today’s market moves:
S&P 500 down 0.30% to 3,841.47
Dow Jones down 0.57% to 30,996.98
Nasdaq up 0.090% to 13,543.06
Gold: $1,853
Bitcoin: $33,434
US10Y: 1.086%
What Happened?
U.S. stocks declined Friday – a muted end to a strong week on Wall Street.
Markets paused after rallying for much of January, with money managers saying there was no obvious reason for the decline. Investors have been cheered in recent days by a strong start to earnings season, but some are worried that high valuations in parts of the market could leave stocks vulnerable in the months to come.
Investors are in wait-and-see mode ahead of the Federal Reserve’s decision on monetary policy and earnings from major companies including Apple, Facebook, and Tesla next week.
New data showed a slowdown in Europe’s economies. According to the IHS Markit purchasing managers’ indexes, the British services industry experienced a steep contraction in January, while Germany’s manufacturing sector and France’s services industry both fell more than economists’ estimate.
IBM shares declined 10 percent after the company said revenue dropped across all its business units, including cloud software.
GameStop jumped 40%, on track for its highest close since 2007. Analysts suggest the move was fueled by individual investors attempting to squeeze short sellers out of their positions.
This Week
Monday: Martin Luther King Day
Tuesday: The Senate confirmation hearing of Janet Yellen as Treasury secretary begins; Earnings expected from Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, and Netflix
Wednesday: Joe Biden takes office as U.S. president; Earnings expected from Morgan Stanley, United Airlines, and Procter and Gamble
Thursday: Weekly jobless claims. Earnings expected from IBM and Intel
Friday: Earnings expected from Ally Financial