NEW YORK (awp international) – After two strong weeks of recovery, the US stock market showed mixed direction on Monday. While the standard value indices hardly made any progress or weakened slightly, the Nasdaq indices rose.
Investors are weighing economic risks from inflation and tightening monetary policy against the prospects of continued economic growth, the market said. The war in Ukraine also remains in focus. In Istanbul, representatives of Russia and Ukraine want to talk again about a ceasefire on Tuesday. At the same time, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wants to “thoroughly” examine Ukraine’s neutrality, which Russia has demanded.
The Dow Jones Industrial fell 0.50 percent to 34,686.69 points around two and a half hours before the close of trading. The market-wide S&P 500 barely moved, down 0.09 percent to 4538.97 points, while the technology-heavy Nasdaq 100 rose 0.52 percent to 14,830.09 points.
On the company side, Tesla shares came into focus with an increase of 8.0 percent as the top value in the Nasdaq selection index. They continued their recent recovery rally, benefiting from the electric car maker’s announcement that it would seek shareholder approval for another stock split. Tesla shares are up nearly 45 percent since mid-March.
In addition, a takeover project attracted attention: HP Inc wants to take over the headset manufacturer Plantronics as part of a $3.3 billion deal. The transaction, to be settled in cash only, will bring Plantronics shareholders $40 per share, a premium of 53 percent to Friday’s closing price, it said. Plantronics shares shot up 50.5 percent to $39.43. The shares of the laptop and printer manufacturer HP, on the other hand, fell by 2.3 percent.
Altria shares fell 3.2 percent, while Philip Morris lost 2.5 percent, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal on plans by US retailer Walmart. Walmart will no longer sell cigarettes in some stores in states such as California, Florida, New Mexico and Arkansas, citing people who have been informed. Walmart does not want to give up cigarette sales entirely.
Shares in oil companies were also conspicuous, suffering from the current fall in oil prices. At the end of the Dow, Chevron shares fell by 2.4 percent. ExxonMobil fell 3.0 percent in the S&P 100 and ConocoPhillips fell 4.1 percent./ck/he
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