On Tuesday, March 5th, U.S. markets closed lower, with the three major indexes each falling more than 1%, hit by declines in big tech firms and the chip industry, ahead of key economic data and Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s remarks.
In economic data, U.S. factory orders dropped 3.6% in January, worsening from December’s 0.3% fall. The ISM services PMI also decreased to 52.6 in February from January’s 53.4, below forecasts of 53.
Apple shares fell after a research report showed a drop in China’s iPhone sales in early 2024 due to rising competition from companies like Huawei.
Eight of 11 major S&P 500 sectors fell, led by technology and consumer discretionary. Energy led gains, followed by consumer staples.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 1.04% to close at 38,585.19. The S&P 500 fell 1.02%, ending the day at 5,078.65. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite slid 1.65%, finishing the session at 15,939.59.
Asian Markets Today
- On Wednesday, Japan’s Nikkei 225 index closed the session higher by 0.06% at 40,122.50, led by gains in the Paper & Pulp, Shipbuilding, and Electrical/Machinery sectors.
- In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 was up 0.12% and closed at 7,733.50, led by gains in the Financials, Utilities and Energy sectors.
- India’s Nifty 50 closed higher by 0.53% at 22,474.05, while the Nifty 500 declined slightly by 0.01% to 20,379.55.
- China’s Shanghai Composite declined 0.26% to 3,039.93, while the Shenzhen CSI 300 fell 0.41%, closing at 3,551.05.
- Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index climbed 1.70%, concluding the day at 16,438.09.
Eurozone at 06:30 AM ET
- The European STOXX 600 index was up 0.25%.
- Germany’s DAX fell 0.03%.
- France’s CAC fell 0.01%.
- U.K’s FTSE 100 traded higher by 0.36%.
Commodities at 06:30 AM ET
- Crude Oil WTI was trading higher by 1.05% at $78.97/bbl, and Brent was up 0.61% at $82.55/bbl.
- Natural Gas declined 1.33% to $1.931.
- Gold was trading lower by 0.09% at $2,139.40, Silver fell 0.26% to $23.922, while Copper gained 0.37% to $3.8613.
- Gold prices stayed above $2,100 on Wednesday, close to the previous session’s record high, amid expectations of a mid-year U.S. rate cut and safe-haven demand.
US Futures at 06:30 AM ET
Dow futures were up 0.19%, S&P 500 futures gained 0.32%, and Nasdaq 100 Futures rose 0.69%.
Forex at 06:30 AM ET
The U.S. Dollar Index declined 0.16% to 103.63, USD/JPY was down 0.23% to 149.69, and AUD/USD slid 0.36% to 1.5321.
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