US markets kick off trading session in the green; S&P 500 up 0.56%, Dow Jones up 0.22 percent
Market watchers were anticipating a higher opening for the US indices after Dow Futures were up 0.27 percent, S&P 500 futures were up 0.54 percent and Nasdaq futures were uo 0.81 percent before market open.
US stocks kicked off the February 26 trading session in the green with the S&P 500 trading 0.56 percent higher at 5,988.72 . This gain comes after 5 sessions in the red. The Nasdaq Composite also gained 0.74 percent and was trading at 19,168.57. The Dow Jones Industrial Average also gained 0.22 percent to trade at 43,716.88
Market watchers were anticipating a higher opening for the US indices after Dow Futures were up 0.27 percent, S&P 500 futures were up 0.54 percent and Nasdaq futures were uo 0.81 percent before market open.
All eyes will be on chipmaker Nvidia which is set to announce its fourth quarter earnings after the bell. The results for Nvidia come after the tech segment, especially Nvidia had been facing pressure post the release of Chinese DeepSeek which is believed could change the global AI market. The stock has fallen around 9 percent over the last five trading sessions.
Market analysts are expected to also keep a close watch on what Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has to say about the challenges in the AI market. CNBC reports that according to an estimate by Factset, the company could report around $38 billion in sales for the quarter ended in January, a 72 percent YoY increase. The stock was trading around 3 percent higher at 130.82 at 9:40 am ET.
Another factor weighing heavy on the market has been the Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence Index which fell to 98.3 this month, a decline from the previous month and the steepest monthly drop since August 2021. Additionally, the Expectations Index plunged 9.3 points to 72.9, dipping below the recession threshold for the first time since June 2024. The CII is a key economic indicator of consumer sentiment, reflecting how optimistic or pessimistic people feel about the economy.
Top gainers on the S&P 500 include Super Micro Computer Inc, Axon Enterprise Inc and Intuit Inc. Decliners include Keysight Technologies Inc, Centene Corp and Molina Healthcare Inc.
Asian Indices gain
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Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index closed the day around 3.27 percent higher at 23,877. The gains came after a budget announcement that aims to develop the country into an artificial intelligence hub. South Korea’s Kospi closed 0.41 percent higher at 2,641.09 while Mainland China’s CSI300 index ended the day 0.87% higher at 3,959.94. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.14 percent to 8,240.70.
The Indian Nifty and Sensex were closed for trading.