Wall Street Pauses as Investors Await Fed Rate Decision; Tech Stocks Lead Modest Gains

U.S. markets ended mixed after a volatile week, with the Nasdaq and S&P 500 edging higher while the Dow slipped. Traders weighed stronger jobless data and renewed optimism for a Fed rate cut, as tech and broker stocks paced the rebound.

The Nasdaq rose 51.04 points (0.2%) to 23,505.14 and the S&P 500 inched up 7.40 points (0.1%) to 6,857.12, the narrower Dow edged down 31.96 points (0.1%) to 47,850.94.

Wall Streets momentum stalled as traders paused to gauge the markets short-term direction after a volatile week. Stocks dipped Monday following last weeks rally, then bounced back during choppy trading midweek, largely supported by growing expectations that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates again next week.

Investors mostly brushed off a Labor Department report showing initial jobless claims unexpectedly fell to 191,000, the lowest level since September 2022. Although the drop slightly tempered the rate-cut optimism, economists still expect a quarter-point cut, noting that claims tend to swing seasonally but continue to reflect relatively low job losses.

Computer hardware stocks saw a substantial rebound, with the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index surging by 3.0% after slumping by 1.7%. brokerage stocks were significantly strong, as reflected by the 1.8% gain posted by the NYSE Arca Broker/Dealer Index. housing stocks notably moved downwards dragging the Philadelphia Housing Sector Index down by 1.6%.

Asia-Pacific stocks moved mostly higher. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index surged by 2.3%, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index climbed by 0.7%. Meanwhile, the major European markets all moved to the upside on the day. While the German DAX Index advanced by 0.8%, the French CAC 40 Index rose by 0.4% and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index edged up by 0.2%.

In the bond market, treasuries gave back ground after moving higher over the two previous sessions. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note which moves opposite of its price, climbed 5.1 bps to 4.10%.

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