US equity indexes traded mixed as the so-called Magnificent-7 took a beating, pushing the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite lower.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq dropped 1.2% to 18,939.1, and the S&P 500 fell 0.5% to 5,799.2. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.3% to 42,084.3. Technology and utilities led the steepest decliners while energy and materials were among the top gainers intraday.
Most US Treasury yields rose, with the 10-year trading up 1.4 basis points to 4.79% after touching a fresh intraday 52-week high earlier in the session. Both securities closed higher last week following Friday's blockbuster nonfarm payrolls report that beat market expectations, increasing the probability of the Federal Reserve remaining on a policy pause throughout this year as per data compiled by the FedWatch Tool.
Nvidia (NVDA), Apple (AAPL), Meta Platforms (META), Tesla (TSLA), and Alphabet (GOOG, GOOGL) were in the steepest 10 decliners intraday among mega-caps, which are firms with a market capitalization of more than $200 billion. Microsoft (MSFT) and Amazon.com (AMZN), the two remaining Magnificent-7 companies, were in the 20 worst performers intraday. As of late 2024, these seven companies reportedly accounted for about 31% of the S&P 500.
The Magnificent-7 are declining ahead of December's producer price index release on Tuesday and the consumer price index on Wednesday amid concern a hot inflation print would push Treasury yields even higher. Friday's University of Michigan consumer expectations survey showed the five-year inflation outlook accelerated to 3.3% from 3% a month ago.
The upcoming inflation data may reinforce the sentiment that the Federal Open Market Committee will likely remain on hold for "some time" if the December CPI consensus estimates come in as expected, a Scotiabank note said late Friday.
Meanwhile, West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures jumped 1.6% to $78.08 a barrel, its highest level since mid-August on an intraday basis, after the US announced new sanctions on Russia.
In company news, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) on Monday agreed to acquire Intra-Cellular Therapies (ITCI) for about $14.6 billion in cash to strengthen its neuroscience portfolio.
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