U.S. stocks reached a standstill today, with the Dow Jones index edging lower as the market cautiously watched the ticker tape on Wednesday.
The Dow traded down 0.05% to 37,886.62, while the NASDAQ rose 0.59% to 15,517.32. The S&P 500 also rose, gaining 0.29% to 4,878.52.
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Market Movements
Communication services shares surged by 1.7% on Wednesday, while utilities shares fell by 0.8% in trading on the same day.
Industry Update
The S&P Global US services PMI hit a seven-month high of 52.9 in January, with the manufacturing PMI soaring to 50.3 from 47.9 the previous month. The S&P Global composite PMI also rose to 52.3 in January, compared to the previous month’s level of 50.9.
Stocks Gaining Momentum
Shares of Getaround, Inc. (GETR) skyrocketed 161% to $0.4794 after securing $20 million in financing, while Evaxion Biotech A/S (EVAX) witnessed a surge of 127% to $11.33 following a 13G filing revealing Merck & Co’s 11.4% stake in the company. Kura Oncology, Inc. (KURA) shares were also up, gaining 46% to $19.58 after an oversubscribed $150 million private placement.
Stocks Declining
BlackBerry Limited (BB) shares plummeted 19% to $2.8850 after the company proposed a private offering of $160 million of convertible senior notes. Annovis Bio, Inc. (ANVS) witnessed an 18% decrease to $9.57 following a postponement in the Phase III study data release for buntanetap in Parkinson’s Disease. DuPont de Nemours, Inc. (DD) was also down, falling 11% to $66.37 after the company announced preliminary fourth-quarter and full year 2023 results and issued first-quarter guidance.
Commodity Market
In commodity news, oil traded up 1.1% to $75.20, gold traded down 0.5% at $2,016.20, silver traded up 1.7% to $22.84, and copper rose 2.3% to $3.8810 on Wednesday.
Euro Zone Market Update
European shares closed higher today, with the eurozone’s STOXX 600 gaining 1.18%. London’s FTSE 100 rose 0.56%, Spain’s IBEX 35 Index rose 1.16%, the German DAX climbed 1.58%, French CAC 40 gained 0.91%, and Italy’s FTSE MIB Index rose 0.87%. The HCOB Eurozone manufacturing PMI climbed to 46.6 in January, marking the highest level in ten months, while services PMI fell to 48.4 in January from 48.8 in the prior month. France’s composite PMI fell to 44.2 in January from December’s reading of 44.8, while German composite PMI slipped to 47.1 from 47.4 in the prior month. The S&P Global UK manufacturing PMI climbed to a nine-month high of 47.3 in January, while services PMI increased to 53.8 in January from 53.4.
Asia Pacific Market Performance
Asian markets closed mostly higher on Wednesday, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 falling 0.80%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index climbing 3.56%, China’s Shanghai Composite Index gaining 1.80%, and India’s S&P BSE Sensex rising by 0.98%. The HSBC Flash Indian services PMI increased to 61.2 in January from 59 in the previous month, while Indian manufacturing PMI climbed to 56.9 from 54.9 in December. The au Jibun Bank Japan composite PMI increased to 51.1 in January versus a final reading of 50.0 in the earlier month. Japan’s posted a trade surplus of JPY 62.10 billion in December versus a year-ago deficit of JPY 1,497.93 billion.
Economic Indicators
U.S. mortgage applications increased by 3.7% in the week ending Jan. 19, 2024. Furthermore, US crude oil inventories fell by 9.233 million barrels in the week ending Jan. 19, marking the biggest decline since August and compared to market estimates of a 2.15 million-barrel decline.
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