US markets end deeply in red on Thursday

05 Apr 2024 Evaluate

The US markets ended deeply in red on Thursday with Nasdaq settling over 225 points amid a continued surge by the price of crude oil, which advanced for the fifth straight session and reached its highest levels since last October. Crude for May delivery jumped $1.16 to $86.59 a barrel, raising concerns higher energy prices will keep inflation elevated and convince the Federal Reserve to hold off on lowering interest rates. On the sectoral front, semiconductor stocks moved sharply lower over the course of the session, dragging the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index down by 3.0 percent. Shares of AI darling Nvidia (NVDA) plunged by 3.4 percent after jumping as much as 1.9 percent early in the trading day. Considerable weakness also emerged among housing stocks, as reflected by the 1.6 percent loss posted by the Philadelphia Housing Sector Index.

On the economic data front, the Labor Department released a report showing first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits rose by more than expected in the week ended March 30th. The report said initial jobless claims climbed to 221,000, an increase of 9,000 from the previous week's revised level of 212,000. Street had expected jobless claims to inch up to 214,000 from the 210,000 originally reported for the previous week. Besides, a report released by the Commerce Department showed the U.S. trade deficit unexpectedly widened in the month of February. The Commerce Department said the trade deficit increased to $68.9 billion in February from a revised $67.6 billion in January. Street had expected the trade deficit to narrow to $67.0 billion from the $67.4 billion originally reported for the previous month.

Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 530.16 points or 1.35 percent to 38,596.98, Nasdaq dropped 228.38 points or 1.4 percent to 16,049.08 and S&P 500 was down by 64.28 points or 1.23 percent to 5,147.21.


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