Stock Market Update

[BRIEFING.COM] The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite are trading higher while the Dow Jones Industrial Average and Russell 2000 show solid losses. Many stocks are trading down due to an underlying negative bias driven in part by ongoing consolidation efforts. Decliners lead advancers by a 5-to-2 margin at the NYSE and by a 5-to-3 margin at the Nasdaq.

Semiconductor-related names, mega caps, and growth stocks are back in a leadership position today, boosting the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite. NVIDIA (NVDA 123.75, +5.61, +4.7%) is a standout in that respect, rebounding after sharp declines in recent sessions. 

The PHLX Semiconductor Index (SOX) is trading 0.9% higher, the Vanguard Mega Cap Growth ETF (MGK) shows a 0.9% gain, and the Russell 3000 Growth Index sports a 0.7% gain.  

Broadcom (AVGO 1573.32, -18.17, -1.1%) is an influential laggard in the semiconductor space after trading up as much as 0.8% earlier. 

The heavily-weighted S&P 500 information technology sector trades up 1.1% despite the decline in Broadcom. The communication services sector (+1.0%) is also trading higher thanks to its mega cap constituents while the remaining nine sectors sport losses ranging from 0.3% (energy) to 1.6% (real estate).

Reviewing today's economic data:

• April FHFA Housing Price Index 0.2%; Prior 0.1%
• April S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Index 7.2% (Briefing.com consensus 6.9%); Prior was revised to 7.5% from 7.4%
• June Consumer Confidence 100.4 (Briefing.com consensus 100.0); Prior was revised to 101.3 from 102.0
  • The key takeaway from the report is that expectations for future income weakened. If that perception builds and/or is realized, then it is apt to detract from discretionary spending activity.