Delta Variant and Decline in Treasury Yields Lead to Dow Down, Nasdaq Up... Facebook Joins $1 Trillion Market Cap Club

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy New York=Correspondent Baek Jong-min] The New York stock market closed reflecting concerns over the COVID-19 Delta variant and a decline in Treasury yields.

On the 28th (local time), the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 150.57 points (0.44%) to 34,283.27, the S&P 500 rose 9.91 points (0.23%) to 4,290.61, and the Nasdaq closed at 14,500.51, up 140.12 points (0.98%).

The market flow on the day contrasted with strength in tech stocks and weakness in cyclical stocks.

Over the weekend, President Joe Biden stepped back from his stance that both the infrastructure investment bill and the human infrastructure investment bill must be passed simultaneously, leading to a decline in Treasury yields.

After the release of the May consumer spending data and the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) index on the 25th, the U.S. 10-year Treasury yield, which had entered the 1.5% range, returned to the 1.4% range on this day. The Treasury yield fell 0.05 percentage points to 1.48%.

The market is focusing on the June employment data to be released this week. Depending on the employment data results, the direction of Treasury yields and the New York stock market is expected to be determined.

The decline in Treasury yields encouraged a rise in tech stocks, but cyclical stocks showed weakness amid concerns over the spread of the Delta variant. United Airlines fell 2%, American Airlines dropped 3%, and cruise operator Royal Caribbean Cruises plunged 6%.

Most banks also showed weakness reflecting the decline in Treasury yields, but JPMorgan rose in after-hours trading on news of dividend increases.

Boeing fell more than 3% following reports that the 777X long-range passenger plane is unlikely to receive Federal Aviation Administration approval until mid to late 2023 at the earliest.

The spread of the Delta variant also pulled down oil prices. August West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil prices traded at $72.91 per barrel, down $1.14 (1.5%) from the previous day. Concerns over the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) meeting also contributed to the decline in oil prices.

As oil prices fell, energy sector stocks dropped 3%.

Semiconductor company Nvidia rose 5% on news that it received public support from Broadcom, Marvell, and MediaTek regarding its acquisition of ARM.

Facebook shares surged 4% after a U.S. court dismissed the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) antitrust lawsuit against Facebook. On the same day, Facebook's market capitalization surpassed $1 trillion for the first time.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.