Stock Market Update

[BRIEFING.COM] It isn't hard to see where the market's bread is being buttered today. The information technology sector is up 1.1%; the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index is up 3.1%; and the Vanguard Mega-Cap Growth ETF, led by AMZN, is up 0.6%.

What isn't as easy to see is the weakness below the headline standings for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq. That shows up in breadth figures, which favor decliners by a 7-to-6 margin at the NYSE and an 11-to-9 margin at the Nasdaq.

The health care (-1.4%), industrials (-0.9%), financial (-0.5%), and energy (-0.5%) sectors are the early laggards.

In other news, the DOJ just announced that it is dropping its criminal probe of Fed Chair Powell. That move should presumably clear the way for his eventual confirmation, as Sen. Tillis (R-NC), who is in favor of Kevin Warsh being the next Fed chair, said he would not vote to get his nomination out of committee unless that DOJ investigation was dropped.