4:09 pm: High trading yields "depressing growth," says Truist CIO
The Dow closed Tuesday up 39 points, 0.1%, at 33,242, the Nasdaq Composite dropped 145 points, 1.4%, to 10,353 and the S&P 500 shed 16 points, 0.4%, to 3,829.
A slight afternoon selloff wasn't enough to keep the benchmarks from remaining mixed throughout the session. That's due to a number of reasons during this shortened trading week, according to Keith Lerner, Truist’s co-chief investment officer.
“It’s basically the continuation of high yields depressing growth, with redistribution into other sectors that are smaller, but not big enough to change the headline index,” Lerner said, as reported by CNBC.
The yield on 10-year Treasury notes was up more than 10 basis points to at 3.852%.
12:30 pm: Southwest shares grounded after massive flight cancelations
Shortly after midday, the Dow was up 154 points, 0.5%, to 33,358, while the Nasdaq Composite fell 96 points, 0.9%, to 10,402 and the S&P 500 lost 2 points to 3,842.
The benchmarks are mixed in the first day of the shortened holiday trading week, but for the month, the Dow is down about 3.6%, the Nasdaq is more than 9% lower and the S&P %00 has called 5.9%. All three are on pace for their worst month since September and their worst year since 2008.
Among the laggards is Southwest Airlines Co, shares of which are down 4.8% to $34.35. The airline has canceled thousands of flights — 70% of its schedule Monday and 60% of its schedule Tuesday, according to reports — due to the historic winter storm.
9.35 am: Stocks oscillate
US stock indexes opened mixed as Wall Street returned from the long holiday weekend to the news that China would open its borders next month, bolstering investors’ hopes that the move would support global growth.
The S&P 500 slipped 0.2% while, the tech-dominated Nasdaq Composite slid 0.5% while the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.1%.
According to market pundits, China's move could support the teetering global economy at a time when many countries have hiked interest rates substantially to try and tame runaway inflation.
7: 30 am: Trading could be lacklustre
US stocks are expected to return from the holidays in positive fashion, extending last Friday's late, late Santa rally, with global sentiment seeing some improvement after China said it would lift COVID-19 quarantine requirements on international arrivals.
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average were 0.6% higher in pre-market trading on Tuesday, while those for the S&P 500 also added 0.6% and contracts for the Nasdaq 100 gained 0.4%.
Before the festive long holiday weekend, in choppy Friday trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average had closed 176.44 points, or 0.5% higher to end at 33,203.93, while the S&P gained 0.6%, and the tech-laden Nasdaq Composite rose 0.2%.
However, after a three-week string of losses for the S&P and the Nasdaq, US markets are still set to end 2022 with a down month. The S&P has given up 5.8% in December, while the Nasdaq has lost 8.5% and the Dow industrials 4%.
Trading overall could be lacklustre as well with markets in some regions including London, Dublin, Hong Kong and Australia remaining closed until Wednesday.
Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote Bank commented: "It has been quite a quiet start to the week with many major markets still closed for Xmas holiday ... A few encouraging news, however, could give a minor boost to equity markets.
"First, released last Friday, the US PCE data, the Federal Reserve’s (Fed) favourite gauge of inflation fell to 5.5% in November, the core PCE slipped below 5% to 4.7%. Still more than twice the 2% policy target, but on the right path after all the tightening drama of 2022."
"Second," she added, "the Chinese reopening continues, with news that the country will scrap Covid quarantines and lower Covid to a lower-threat disease. The news helped the Chinese stocks gain at the start of the week. Yet, there is reportedly around 250 million new cases since the reopening, which will likely throw a shadow on the reopening glow."
On the corporate front, American depositary receipts of Chinese companies rose pre-market on the China quarantine requirements news, with Alibaba and Baidu both up around 2%.
But Tesla shares fell 3.5% pre-market after The Wall Street Journal reported that the electric carmaker suspended car production at its Shanghai plant on Saturday, extending a planned eight-day production halt at its largest worldwide plant by car output.
And shares in Southwest Airlines dropped 4% after the airline canceled more than two-thirds of its flights on Monday and said it plans to slash its schedules Tuesday and Wednesday in the face of severe weather conditions, a meltdown that left thousands of customers stranded.