[New York Stock Market] Google Alphabet Leads Market... Closes Higher for 4 Consecutive Trading Days

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy New York=Special Correspondent Joselgina] The three major indices of the U.S. New York stock market continued their four-day winning streak, buoyed by strong earnings and stock splits from Google Alphabet. Even weak employment data turned out to be a positive factor for the market. Investors, judging that it could lead to a slowdown in the Federal Reserve's (Fed) tightening pace, showed buying activity at lower prices.

On this day in the New York stock market, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 35,629.33, up 224.09 points (0.63%) from the previous session. The large-cap S&P 500 index rose 42.84 points (0.94%) to 4,589.38, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq index ended the day at 14,417.55, up 71.54 points (0.50%).

The three major indices maintained their four-day consecutive gains due to strong corporate earnings and investors' buying at lower prices. In particular, Alphabet, Google's parent company, which announced a 20-for-1 stock split plan along with strong earnings the previous day, recorded a 7.5% increase. Alphabet supported the market and led the overall market rally.

Qualcomm, which is set to release earnings after the market close, ended up 6.25%, and Meta (formerly Facebook) closed up 1.25%. Nvidia (2.45%), Microsoft (1.52%), Apple (0.70%), and Intel (1.14%) also showed upward trends. Jim Paulsen, chief investment strategist at RoyHold Group, said, "Emotions are settling down, and greed is replacing fear," adding, "The fear of missing out on a rally after a correction is greater than the fear that stock prices could fall further," reflecting the buying atmosphere. Jeff Kilburg, chief investment officer at Sanctuary Wealth, noted, "Technology stocks were hit hardest in January due to the impact of interest rate hikes," and "Investors are buying some tech stocks that were beaten down in January."

However, Tesla (-2.75%), Netflix (-6.05%), and Amazon.com (-0.38%) showed declines. General Motors (GM) fell 1.05% despite reporting earnings that exceeded expectations the previous day. PayPal plunged over 20% due to earnings guidance below market expectations. Starbucks slipped over 1% after Goldman Sachs lowered its target price.

The U.S. 10-year Treasury yield returned to the 1.7% range. The 2-year yield also dropped to the 1.13% range during the session. This was due to weak employment data. According to the ADP National Employment Report, private sector employment in January decreased by 301,000 compared to the previous month, far below market expectations. However, this data had a positive effect on the stock market that day. Considering the Fed's focus on employment and inflation indicators, there is speculation that the pace of early tightening could slow down more than feared. Nonetheless, experts pointed out that this is a temporary figure and will not significantly affect the Fed's course.

Concerns about tightening, which had kept the market on edge, appeared somewhat eased. Some Fed officials said they do not want rate hikes to disrupt financial markets and ruled out the possibility of a 0.50 percentage point increase at once. James Bullard, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis and a representative hawkish figure, dismissed the possibility of a 0.50 percentage point rate hike in March. The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) Volatility Index (VIX), known as Wall Street's fear gauge, moved down 5.28% to around 20.80.

However, ongoing geopolitical tensions surrounding Russia and Ukraine are expected to act as future market variables. U.S. President Joe Biden approved the additional deployment of about 3,000 U.S. troops to Eastern Europe in preparation for a possible Russian invasion of Ukraine.

International oil prices rose slightly. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, the March West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil price traded at $88.26 per barrel, up $0.06 (0.07%) from the previous session. Despite the decision by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and Russia, along with other major non-OPEC oil producers in the 'OPEC Plus (OPEC+)' coalition, to maintain oil production increases, prices remained at their highest level in seven years.

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