Following the rally seen to start the week, the major U.S. stock indexes moved in starkly opposite directions during trading on Tuesday.

While the Dow extended the strong upward move seen on Monday and the S&P 500 (SPI:SP500) recovered from early weakness, the tech-heavy NASDAQ has slipped back to the downside.

The Dow jumped 559.33 points or 1.18 percent to finish at 47,927.96, while the NASDAQ slumped 58.87 points or 0.25 percent to close at 23,468.30 and the S&P 500 rose 14.18 points or 0.21 percent to end at 6,846.61.

The mixed performance on Wall Street came as traders express some uncertainty about the near-term outlook for the markets – especially the possibility of a tech bubble – following recent volatility.

Stocks had rallied on Monday amid optimism about an end to the record-setting U.S. government shutdown, regaining ground following the considerable weakness seen in last week.

However, valuation concerns continue to hang over the markets, as traders had largely shrugged off worries about the economic impact of the shutdown.

The continued advance by the Dow came amid strong gains by Nike (NYSE:NKE), Merck (NYSE:MRK) and Amgen (AMGN).

Meanwhile, a 3.1 percent slump by shares of Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) weighed on the NASDAQ after Softbank sold its entire stake in the chipmaker for more than $5 billion.

Pharmaceutical stocks saw significant strength on the day, with the NYSE Arca Pharmaceutical Index surging by 2.4 percent.

A sharp increase by the price of crude oil has also contributed to considerable strength among energy stocks, which are moving higher along with biotechnology and healthcare stocks.

On the other hand, semiconductor stocks have come under pressure, dragging the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index down by 2.0 percent.

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance during trading on Tuesday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index edged down by 0.1 percent and China’s Shanghai Composite Index fell by 0.4 percent, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose by 0.2 percent.

Meanwhile, the major European markets all moved to the upside on the day. While the German DAX Index rose 0.53 percent, the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index climbed 1.15 percent and the French CAC 40 Index gained 1.25 percent.

SOURCE: RTTNEWS

This content is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, investment, or other professional advice. It should not be considered a recommendation to buy or sell any securities or financial instruments. All investments involve risk, including the potential loss of principal. Past performance is not indicative of future results. You should conduct your own research and consult with a qualified financial advisor before making any investment decisions.
Some portions of this content may have been generated or assisted by artificial intelligence (AI) tools and been reviewed for accuracy and quality by our editorial team.