Stock Market Update

[BRIEFING.COM] The S&P 500 (+0.2%), Nasdaq Composite (+0.2%), and Dow Jones Industrial Average (+0.02%) settled higher than yesterday's closing levels while the Russell 2000 underperformed, dropping 0.7%. 

Volume was below-average again, reflecting light participation in front of Labor Day. There was also a lack of market-moving news and a lack of strong buying interest in front of NVIDIA's (NVDA 128.30, +1.84, +1.5%) earnings after Wednesday's close, contributing to the muted action in the market.

Other mega cap and semiconductor-related names outperformed after lagging the broader market yesterday. The PHLX Semiconductor Index (SOX) jumped 1.1%, which leaves this week's loss at 1.4%. The Vanguard Mega Cap Growth ETF (MGK) settled 0.3% higher, leaving it down 0.3% since Friday.

Apple (AAPL 228.03, +0.85, +0.4%) and Eli Lilly (LLY 954.48, +3.95, +0.4%) were among the top performers in the mega cap space. AAPL traded higher after naming Kevan Parekh as its new CFO and LLY traded up on its announcement of a Zepbound savings program for non-covered patients with an on-label prescription that will feature single-dose vials priced at a 50% or greater discount through its self-pay channel.

The performance of the S&P 500 sectors was mixed. The information technology (+0.6%) and financial (+0.5%) sectors, which make up nearly 45% of the index, closed at the top of the leaderboard. Energy (-0.9%) was the worst performing sector amid falling oil prices. WTI crude oil futures slid 2.3% to $75.61/bbl.

The 2-yr note yield fell three basis points to 3.90% and the 10-yr note yield rose one basis point to 3.83%. This price action followed today's $69 billion 2-yr note auction, which met solid demand.

• S&P 500: +18.3% YTD
• Nasdaq Composite: +18.0% YTD
• S&P Midcap 400: +10.6% YTD
• Dow Jones Industrial Average: +9.5% YTD
• Russell 2000: +8.6% YTD

Reviewing today's economic releases:

• The Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index improved to 103.5 in August (Briefing.com consensus 100.0) from an upwardly revised 101.9 (from 100.3) in July.
  • The key takeaway from the report is that consumers are starting to show more concern about labor market conditions, which could eventually translate into lower consumer spending activity if that labor market angst leads to deferred discretionary spending decisions.

Wednesday's economic data is limited to the weekly MBA Mortgage Applications Index at 7:00 ET and the weekly EIA Crude Oil Inventories at 10:30 ET.