Stock Market Update

[BRIEFING.COM] The S&P 500 (-0.2%) and Nasdaq Composite (-0.2%) hold modest losses, while the DJIA now trades on its flatline. 

An uptick in selling activity leaves only the health care (+1.0%), communication services (+1.3%), and real estate (+0.2%) sectors in positive territory for the day.

Strong early showings from Meta Platforms (META 794.08, +11.96, +1.53%) and Alphabet (GOOG 206.99, +3.17, +1.56%) underpin the nice gain in the consumer discretionary sector and prevent a further loss in the S&P 500. 

The preliminary University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index for August fell to 58.6 (Briefing.com consensus: 61.3) from the final reading of 61.7 for July. In the same period a year ago, the index stood at 67.9.

The key takeaway from the report is that it marked the first downturn in consumer sentiment in four months, driven by rising worries about inflation.