Stocks attempted a recovery after starting lower on Thursday, yet ultimately continued their decline throughout the session. This resulted in the Dow closing in negative territory for the sixth straight session.
By the end of trading, all major indexes had hit new session lows. The Dow dropped 234.44 points, marking a 0.5 percent decrease, closing at 43,914.12. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq fell 132.05 points or 0.7 percent to 19,902.84, and the S&P 500 saw a decline of 32.94 points or 0.5 percent, reaching 6,051.25.
This downward movement was partly due to traders looking to capitalize on the previous day's strong performances. Notably, the tech-focused Nasdaq surpassed the 20,000 mark for the first time on Wednesday.
Additional bearish sentiments arose following a Labor Department report that indicated a higher-than-expected rise in U.S. producer prices for November. According to the report, the producer price index for final demand increased by 0.4 percent in November, compared to a revised 0.3 percent rise in October. Economists had initially predicted a 0.2 percent uptick, aligning with the preliminary report from the previous month.
The report also revealed an acceleration in the annual producer price growth rate, climbing to 3.0 percent in November from a revised 2.6 percent in October. The expected increase had been to 2.6 percent from the initially reported 2.4 percent.
Despite widespread expectations for the Federal Reserve to reduce interest rates in the upcoming week, these data points have introduced apprehensions concerning the pace at which the central bank might decide to lower rates in the early months of the next year.
**Sector News**
Gold stocks experienced a sharp decline, coinciding with a drop in gold prices. The NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index plummeted by 3.8 percent after achieving its highest closing level in over a month on Wednesday.
There was also notable weakness in steel stocks, as evidenced by a 2.7 percent fall in the NYSE Arca Steel Index. Airline stocks faced pressures throughout the session, pulling the NYSE Arca Airline Index down by 2.5 percent. Energy stocks followed suit, weakened by a decrease in crude oil prices. However, networking stocks showed a significant upward trend during the day.
**Other Markets**
Globally, Asian stock markets generally trended upwards on Thursday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index surged by 1.2 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index saw an increase of 0.9 percent.
In contrast, the major European markets closed with marginal changes after the European Central Bank reduced interest rates by a quarter point. The French CAC 40 Index closed slightly below the unchanged mark, while the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index and Germany's DAX Index each inched up by 0.1 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries continued their decline from previous sessions. Consequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note rose by 5.3 basis points, settling at 4.324 percent.
**Looking Ahead**
Attention on Friday will likely focus on a report concerning import and export prices, as traders seek further insights into the inflation outlook.
The material has been provided by InstaForex Company - www.instaforex.com
By the end of trading, all major indexes had hit new session lows. The Dow dropped 234.44 points, marking a 0.5 percent decrease, closing at 43,914.12. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq fell 132.05 points or 0.7 percent to 19,902.84, and the S&P 500 saw a decline of 32.94 points or 0.5 percent, reaching 6,051.25.
This downward movement was partly due to traders looking to capitalize on the previous day's strong performances. Notably, the tech-focused Nasdaq surpassed the 20,000 mark for the first time on Wednesday.
Additional bearish sentiments arose following a Labor Department report that indicated a higher-than-expected rise in U.S. producer prices for November. According to the report, the producer price index for final demand increased by 0.4 percent in November, compared to a revised 0.3 percent rise in October. Economists had initially predicted a 0.2 percent uptick, aligning with the preliminary report from the previous month.
The report also revealed an acceleration in the annual producer price growth rate, climbing to 3.0 percent in November from a revised 2.6 percent in October. The expected increase had been to 2.6 percent from the initially reported 2.4 percent.
Despite widespread expectations for the Federal Reserve to reduce interest rates in the upcoming week, these data points have introduced apprehensions concerning the pace at which the central bank might decide to lower rates in the early months of the next year.
**Sector News**
Gold stocks experienced a sharp decline, coinciding with a drop in gold prices. The NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index plummeted by 3.8 percent after achieving its highest closing level in over a month on Wednesday.
There was also notable weakness in steel stocks, as evidenced by a 2.7 percent fall in the NYSE Arca Steel Index. Airline stocks faced pressures throughout the session, pulling the NYSE Arca Airline Index down by 2.5 percent. Energy stocks followed suit, weakened by a decrease in crude oil prices. However, networking stocks showed a significant upward trend during the day.
**Other Markets**
Globally, Asian stock markets generally trended upwards on Thursday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index surged by 1.2 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index saw an increase of 0.9 percent.
In contrast, the major European markets closed with marginal changes after the European Central Bank reduced interest rates by a quarter point. The French CAC 40 Index closed slightly below the unchanged mark, while the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index and Germany's DAX Index each inched up by 0.1 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries continued their decline from previous sessions. Consequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note rose by 5.3 basis points, settling at 4.324 percent.
**Looking Ahead**
Attention on Friday will likely focus on a report concerning import and export prices, as traders seek further insights into the inflation outlook.
The material has been provided by InstaForex Company - www.instaforex.com