Investors pinned hopes on Nvidia Corp.’s (NASDAQ:NVDA) earnings to reinvigorate market momentum, and the AI leader delivered an impressive beat-and-raise quarter. This news buoyed major index futures in early Thursday trading, signaling a positive start to the day. Analysts have advocated seizing the recent market dip as a buying opportunity, amplifying anticipation for robust buying activity amidst prevalent FOMO sentiments.
However, market participants remain attentive to several factors shaping the day’s trading landscape, including scheduled Fed speeches, weekly jobless claims data, and private-sector activity readings.
Cues From Wednesday’s Trading:
Wednesday’s market session concluded with a mixed tone as investors digested hawkish Fed minutes, coupled with some disappointing tech earnings, while anxiously awaiting Nvidia’s report. Minutes from the January Federal Open Market Committee meeting revealed the central bank’s cautious stance on rate cuts, preferring to await clearer signals of sustainable inflation trends.
The day commenced with major indexes opening lower, maintaining a sideways trajectory, before deepening losses post-Fed minutes release. A late-session surge helped propel the S&P 500 and Dow Industrials into positive territory, while the Nasdaq Composite, although ending lower, saw improvement from earlier lows, settling at its highest level since early February.
Energy and utility sectors led gains among the 11 S&P 500 sector classes, while IT stocks experienced declines, reflecting the day’s mixed sentiment.
Index
Performance (+/-)
Value
Nasdaq Composite
-0.32%
15,580.87
S&P 500 Index
+0.13%
4,981.80
Dow Industrials
+0.13%
38,612.24
Russell 2000
-1.41%
2,004.14
Analyst Color:
Labor market indicators such as job creation, wages, and layoffs are key data that could be important for determining the sustainability of the market rally, said Morgan Stanley’s Lisa Shalett. “With equity valuations already rich, can today’s economic strength translate to positive surprises in company earnings? The answer likely hinges on what happens in the U.S. labor market,” she said.
If the labor market remains tight, with more jobs than available workers, companies may be …