US Stocks Mixed Yesterday, Fell Slightly After Hitting Record Highs

U.S. stocks fell, after benchmark indexes climbed to records, as consumer and technology shares slumped before the government’s monthly jobs report tomorrow.

An index of biotechnology shares plunged 2.7 percent, halting a three-day rally. The Nasdaq Composite Index fell 0.9 percent after four straight gains. Barnes & Noble Inc. plunged 14 percent as investor Liberty Media Corp. said it will reduce its stake in the bookstore chain. Google Inc. Class A shares added 0.6 percent while its Class C (GOOG) shares rose 0.5 percent after stock in the largest search engine effectively split. Anadarko Petroleum Corp. surged 15 percent to a record after settling federal environmental claims.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index slipped 0.1 percent to 1,888.77 at 4 p.m. in New York after closing the past two days at a record. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.45 point to 16,572.55. The gauge earlier touched an all-time high before closing within five points of its record. About 6 billion shares changed hands on U.S. exchanges, 13 percent less than the three-month average.

“The market still wants to be positive and has this feeling of goodwill, but at times it runs into a little bit of resistance,” Robert Pavlik, chief market strategist at Banyan Partners LLC, which manages $4.5 billion, said in a phone interview. “Nobody wants to buy at an all-time high, and that’s where we are. People are a little bit more cautious. As we get closer to the payroll report, we’ll be in wait and see mode.”

Bloomberg

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Mingze Wu

Mingze Wu

Currency Analyst at Market Pulse
Based in Singapore, Mingze Wu focuses on trading strategies and technical and fundamental analysis of major currency pairs. He has extensive trading experience across different asset classes and is well-versed in global market fundamentals. In addition to contributing articles to MarketPulseFX, Mingze centers on forex and macro-economic trends impacting the Asia Pacific region.
Mingze Wu