December 27, 2024

Brighton Journal

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Stocks were mixed as the Fed's decision approached

Stocks were mixed as the Fed's decision approached

Stocks fell in both directions on Tuesday, as investors monitored the outcome of the Federal Reserve's crucial policy meeting.

The S&P 500 (^GSPC) fell nearly 0.3%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) rose 0.2%, or less than 100 points, after a winning day for key metrics. The Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) fell nearly 0.8% as Nvidia (NVDA) shares fell in the wake of AI updates from the annual developers conference.

Attention is firmly focused on the Fed's two-day meeting that begins Tuesday morning, which is seen as a test for stocks hurt by recent inflation surprises that have dampened bets on interest rate cuts soon.

With policymakers widely expected to keep interest rates at historic highs, the focus is on the “dot chart” for any clues about the number and timing of any cuts this year. The central bank's policy decision is scheduled to be released on Wednesday at 2 p.m. ET.

Meanwhile, the Bank of Japan ended the era of negative interest rates with its first hike in 17 years, creating a sensation in a week full of central bank decisions.

In cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin (BTC-USD) continued to pull back from its recent record high, falling more than 5% to hover below $63,000, on track for its biggest one-day loss in two weeks. Shares of cryptocurrency-related companies Coinbase (COIN) and Marathon Digital (MARA) lost ground alongside the token.

On the corporate front, Unilever (UL) shares rose after Ben & Jerry's maker said it would cut jobs and spin off its ice cream unit.

He lives4 updates

  • Stocks are trending in morning trading

    Here are some of the stocks topping Yahoo Finance's ETFs page during morning trading on Tuesday:

    Unilever (UL): The consumer goods giant's stock rose 2% to start the trading day after it announced plans to spin off its ice cream businesses — which include Ben & Jerry's, Magnum and Klondike — and a restructuring plan that could affect 7,500 jobs as part of the effort. To save more than $800 million over the next three years.

    Bitcoin (Bitcoin-dollar): The dominant cryptocurrency is on track to suffer its biggest daily decline in two weeks, as investors continue to flee the token after it recently hit an all-time high. Bitcoin was trading at $63,000, down about 7%.

    nvidia (NVDA): Following its annual developers conference, the AI ​​darling company lost 3% after it unveiled its latest AI chip, which it said was up to 30 times faster than its predecessor.

    super micro computer (SMCI): Shares of the server manufacturer fell 11% after it said it planned to sell two million shares. The company plans to use approximately $2 billion of proceeds to support operations and enhance manufacturing capacity. The stock offering comes as Super Micro's shares have risen significantly this year, more than tripling due to demand for artificial intelligence technology.

  • Stocks fall ahead of Fed meeting

    Wall Street pulled back as Federal Reserve officials began their two-day meeting to decide their next move on interest rate policy.

    The S&P 500 (^GSPC) fell nearly 0.2%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) rose above the flat line, delivering a win Monday for the major indexes. The Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) fell nearly 0.5% as AI darling Nvidia (NVDA) fell after sharing AI updates from its annual developers conference.

  • Bottom line on Nvidia

    Nvidia (NVDA) stock didn't do much on the first day of its GTC conference despite an impressive array of new product introductions.

    But this does not mean that what the company revealed was disappointing, quite the opposite! I actually think that everything CEO Jensen Huang has shown is very complex, and it may take a few days for investors to digest and evaluate whether the stock requires another push higher.

    Wall Street was happy with what they heard.

    Here's what JPMorgan analyst Harlan Suhr had to say:

    “Overall, the team is distancing itself from its aggressive cadence of new product launches and further product fragmentation over time. With leading silicon processors (GPU/DPU/CPU), hardware/software platforms, and a strong ecosystem, Nvidia is well positioned to continue In our view, capitalizing on key secular trends in artificial intelligence, high-performance computing, gaming, and autonomous vehicles. Bottom line: NVIDIA continues to stay a step or two ahead of its competitors“.

  • AI stock bubble…or not

    With the Nvidia (NVDA) GTC conference still underway on the West Coast, it seems only natural that Bank of America would poll new fund managers today to shed light on the AI ​​stock bubble debate.

    The bottom line: Institutional investors have no idea whether this is a bubble!

    Stock bubble aiStock bubble ai

    Investors can't decide if AI stocks are in a bubble.