Coming off the long Christmas weekend, U.S. stocks on Tuesday were mixed. Megacap technology stocks retreated, while Tesla (TSLA) fell on a report of reduced production at its China plant. The Asian nation was also in focus after it further eased its COVID-19 policies.
By late afternoon, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (COMP.IND) was down 1.19% to 10,372.99 points, with Apple (AAPL) and Alphabet (GOOG) (GOOGL) falling more than 1% each. Tesla declined over 8%.
The benchmark S&P 500 (SP500) was 0.43% lower to 3,828.44 points, while the blue-chip Dow (DJI) was higher by 0.15% to 33,254.21 points.
Of the 11 S&P sectors, seven were trading in the red, led by Consumer Discretionary and Communication Services. Energy and Consumer Staples added the most among the gainers.
With many market participants on vacation for the holiday-shortened week, trading volume is expected to be thin. The benchmark S&P 500 (SP500) retreated for a third straight week on Friday, with hopes for a year-end “Santa Claus” rally having largely diminished.
Turning to the bond markets, rates advanced. The 10-year Treasury yield (US10Y) rose 11 basis points to 3.85% and the 2-year yield (US2Y) rose 7 basis points to 4.40%.
Traders parsed a host of economic data on Tuesday, including retail inventories which were up +0.1% in November to $738.7B and wholesale inventories which came in at +1.0% M/M to $933.6B versus the +0.4% consensus.
Additionally, trade in goods narrowed more than expected in November to -$83.53B compared to the forecasted -$97.0B.
The S&P Case-Shiller home price index for October came in at +8.6% Y/Y, higher than the expected 8.2% consensus.
Furthermore, the Dallas Fed manufacturing survey for November came in at -18.8 versus the prior reading of -19.4.
Among active movers, U.S.-listed Chinese tech firms gained after the country eased up on restrictions for international travelers and continued to strip away the majority of its tough zero-COVID policies.
Tesla fell after Reuters reported that the company was set to maintain a reduced production schedule at its Shanghai plant. The electric vehicle maker was the top percentage loser on the S&P 500.