The S&P 500, a prominent index of U.S. stocks, experienced a second consecutive week of decline, signaling that the previously hot summer rally is starting to cool down. On Friday, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite emerged as the worst-performing major index, falling 0.7 percent and hitting a one-month low.
While the S&P 500 recorded a marginal 0.1 percent drop, the Dow Jones managed to rise by 0.3 percent. Inflation once again took center stage in the market, with mixed signals confusing investors. The Nasdaq, known for its heavy weighting towards growth companies and sensitivity to interest rates, suffered its first consecutive weeks of decline this year. Wall Street is growing concerned about the valuation of big technology companies, which have experienced significant growth throughout the year.
One of the noticeable casualties in the market was Nvidia (NVDA), which lost 3.6 percent, marking its fourth consecutive session of losses. Conversely, shares of UBS (UBS), the Swiss lender, rose by 5.6 percent after announcing that it no longer required government support for its emergency $10 billion takeover of Credit Suisse.
A significant highlight in the S&P 500 was News Corp (NWSA), the media company, which saw its stocks rise by 4.6 percent. While Dow Jones, the publisher of The Wall Street Journal, reported record profits, News Corp experienced an overall loss.
The embattled co-working space operator, WeWork (WE), continued its volatile journey. Despite issuing a viability warning earlier in the week, its shares rallied by 54 percent over the past two days. However, the company’s shares closed relatively unchanged on Friday. To date, WeWork shares remain over 98 percent down from their initial public offering.
In terms of global markets, most overseas stock markets experienced losses, notably European stock markets. On a positive note, oil prices rose, with Brent crude increasing by 0.5 percent to reach $86.81 per barrel.
With the S&P 500 and Nasdaq experiencing declines and mixed signals from inflation data, the future trajectory of the stock market remains uncertain. Investors will be closely monitoring developments to determine whether this cooling trend is a temporary setback or a more long-term cooling of the market.