The Nasdaq composite showed signs of improvement in morning trading on Thursday, with investors processing a plethora of earnings reports and making some gains. However, chip giant Nvidia dipped below its 50-day moving average, putting pressure on the bulls, while fellow chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor signaled a defensive sell. The Nasdaq composite initially dipped slightly but then bounced back to a 0.5% gain, despite experiencing a more than 3% decline for the week, marking its worst performance since January.
Meanwhile, the S&P 500 hovered near break-even before ultimately rising by 0.6%, maintaining a year-to-date increase of 5.3%. The Russell 2000 and Dow Jones Industrial Average also climbed by 0.9% and 0.8%, respectively. The U.S. 10-year government bond yield increased by 5 basis points to 4.63%. Investors are closely watching earnings reports from companies like Netflix and Intuitive Surgical, hoping for positive outlooks to drive market momentum.
Nvidia experienced a volatile trading session, ultimately ending with a 1.5% gain despite initially falling below its moving averages. On the other hand, Taiwan Semiconductor faced a sharp decline of over 4% in rapid turnover, triggering a profit-taking signal by dropping below key technical levels. The company reported a 9% increase in profit but revised its sales outlook, citing challenges stemming from a recent earthquake in Taiwan that affected its chip production. The stock market also saw positive movement from financial stocks like Comerica and D.R. Horton, signaling potential breakout opportunities and positive earnings results.
