S&P 500 Slips as Utilities Slide, Energy Turns Negative
By Yasin Ebrahim
Investing.com – The S&P 500 slipped Monday as energy stocks turned negative even as oil climbed amid expectations for tighter supplies.
The S&P 500 fell 0.27%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.32%, or 111 points, the Nasdaq Composite was down 0.1%.
Energy stocks gave up gains despite oil prices topping $81 a barrel on bets that tighter supplies will continue through year-end at a time when demand remains elevated.
"In the view of the current robust demand, which is likely to be additionally boosted by the switch from gas to oil, plus the restrictive OPEC+ production policy, the oil market will remain tight until year’s end," Commerzbank (DE:CBKG) said in a note.
Utilities, commonly used as a bond proxy given the sector's steady dividends, were down more than 1% as investors continue to expect U.S. Treasury yields will continue to rise, souring sentiment on the sector.
Nextera Energy (NYSE:NEE), Alliant Energy Corp (NASDAQ:LNT), and DTE Energy (NYSE:DTE) energy fell more than 2%.
"The 10-year TSY note yield (TNX) does appear to be staging a minor breakout on the charts- and we believe this is bullish for a retest of the March 2021 highs near 1.80%," Janney Montgomery Scott said in a note.
The bond market was closed Monday for Columbus Day.
Materials stocks were the best performing sector on the day, underpinned by a 4% jump in Freeport-McMoran Copper&Gold Inc (NYSE:FCX) as copper prices continued to climb.
In other news, Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) fell 2% after canceling more than 2,000 flights over the weekend, citing adverse weather and labor shortages. The company hinted that it could reduce its schedule to offset bottlenecks.
"We’ve already made significant reductions from our previously published November and December schedules, and if we think we need to do more, we will," Southwest Airlines President Mike Van de Ven said in a recorded message to employees, according to CNBC.
The subdued action on Wall Street comes as investors await further catalysts for market direction including the start of earnings season and further clues on monetary policy from the Federal Reserve's September meeting minutes due later this week.
JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM) will get earnings underway in earnest when it reports third-quarter earnings on Wednesday, followed by Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) and Citigroup (NYSE:C) on Thursday.
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