US benchmark equity indexes were mostly lower after midday Monday amid a decline in certain technology stocks as markets awaited inflation data and bank earnings due later in the week. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite was down 0.8% at 19,018.4 intraday, while the S&P 500 fell 0.1% to 5,819.3. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.7% to 42,213.5.
Among sectors, tech and utilities saw the biggest drops, while energy led the gainers. Nvidia shares fell 2.6%, the steepest decline on the Dow, with Apple and Microsoft also among the worst performers on the index. Micron Technology was the second-worst performer on the Nasdaq, down 4%, with Palantir Technologies and Palo Alto Networks also seeing declines. Moderna shares slumped nearly 20%, the biggest decline on the S&P 500, after the drugmaker cut its full-year revenue outlook.
The company said it aims to reduce cash costs by $1 billion in 2025 amid its ongoing cost efficiency program. Humana was the top gainer on the S&P 500, up 7.4%, as Wells Fargo adjusted its price target on the health insurer's stock to $337 from $315. Johnson & Johnson agreed to acquire Intra-Cellular Therapies for about $14.6 billion in cash to strengthen its neuroscience portfolio.
The healthcare product conglomerate's shares rose 1.6%, among the best Dow performers, while Intra-Cellular surged 34%. JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, and Citigroup are set to report their latest quarterly financial results later this week. The US 10- and two-year yields were little changed at 4.78% and 4.39%, respectively, intraday. The official US producer price report for December is scheduled to be released Tuesday, followed by consumer inflation data on Wednesday. US consumers' median inflation expectations were unchanged at 3% at the one-year horizon in December, a survey by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York showed Monday.
Their inflation outlooks rose to 3% from 2.6% at the three-year horizon, but dropped to 2.7% from 2.9% at the five-year horizon. West Texas Intermediate crude oil jumped 3% to $78.86 a barrel intraday. "Oil prices rallied, driven by wider US sanctions on Russian oil and the expected hit to China and India's supplies," D.A.
Davidson said in a note to clients. Gold was down 1.4% at $2,676.70 per troy ounce, while silver tumbled 3.5% to $30.24 per ounce..