Stock Market News Today, 6/27/23 – Stocks Close Higher as Investors Cheer Positive Economic Data

Last Updated 4:04 PM EST

Stock indices finished today’s trading session in the green as investors cheered positive economic data. Indeed, the Nasdaq 100 (NDX), the S&P 500 (SPX), and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) gained 1.75%, 1.14%, and 0.63%, respectively. Furthermore, the U.S. 10-Year Treasury yield increased to 3.76%, a jump of more than three basis points. Similarly, the Two-Year Treasury yield also increased, as it hovers around 4.76%.

The Atlanta Federal Reserve updated its latest GDPNow reading, which allows it to estimate GDP growth in real-time. The “nowcast” becomes more accurate as more economic data is released throughout the quarter. Currently, it estimates that the economy will expand by about 1.8% in the second quarter.

This is lower than its previous estimate of 1.9%, which can be attributed to recent releases from the U.S. Census Bureau and the National Association of Realtors.

Last Updated 2:27PM EST

Stocks remain in the green after positive economic data was released on Tuesday. As of 2:27 p.m. EST, the Nasdaq 100 (NDX), the S&P 500 (SPX), and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) are up 1.8%, 1.2%, and 0.7%, respectively.

Earlier today, the Census Bureau released its United States New Home Sales data for May, which came in at 763,000. For reference, forecasters were expecting a print of 675,000. This was also higher than last month’s report of 680,000. However, house prices saw a decrease. Indeed, the median sales price was $416,300 in May compared to $420,800 in April, and the average sales price was $487,300, lower than the $501,000 average seen in the prior month.

Nevertheless, home prices increased according to the Standard & Poor’s United States S&P/Case-Shiller House Price Index Composite – 20 n.s.a. This report measures the change in house prices in 20 metropolitan areas. On a month-over-month basis, prices jumped 1.7% compared to estimates calling for a 1.5% increase. This is on top of the previous month’s increase of 1.6%. However, it’s important for investors to remember that this report is for April, meaning that there is quite a substantial lag in the data.

Furthermore, the Conference Board released its Consumer Confidence report, which, as the name suggests, measures the consumers’ confidence in the economy. This report is believed to be a leading indicator for spending patterns as optimistic consumers are more likely to spend as opposed to pessimistic ones. For June, consumer confidence came in at 109.7, which was higher than expectations of 104. This was also higher than last month’s reading of 102.5.

Last updated: 9:30AM EST

Stocks opened higher on Tuesday morning after a fresh round of economic data. The Nasdaq 100 (NDX), S&P 500 (SPX), and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) were up 0.7%, 0.4%, and 0.23%, respectively, at 9:30 a.m. EST, June 27.

The manufacturing sector seemed to be on a rebound in the month of May after orders for manufactured U.S. goods rose 1.7%. This was the third straight increase in orders fueled by strong demand for passenger planes and new automobiles. In contrast, economists were expecting orders for manufacturing goods to decline by 0.9%. Usually, in an expanding economy, manufacturing orders rise while they contract in a shrinking economy.

The latest round of housing data indicated that U.S. home prices were up by 0.9% in April, according to the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller 20-city house price index. While home prices were strongest in the Southeastern United States, the rest of the country saw declines. The rise in home prices has been also due to a fall in for-sale house listings.

First published: 4:33AM EST

U.S. Futures are rising this morning as traders gear up for the end of June and the first half of 2023. Futures on the Nasdaq 100 (NDX), S&P 500 (SPX), and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) were up 0.36%, 0.26%, and 0.18%, respectively, at 4:00 a.m., EST, June 27.

The Nasdaq Composite fell 1.16% yesterday, signaling that investors are booking profits on the recent tech rally and remain uncertain about the sector’s future in the high-interest rate environment. Electric vehicle stock Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) has been witnessing a series of downgrades in the past couple of days, dragging down its stock. TSLA fell over 6% yesterday, following a downgrade by a Goldman Sachs analyst citing EV pricing pressures. On the AI front, Snowflake (NYSE:SNOW) and Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) announced a partnership to bring the Nvidia Nemo platform to the Snowflake Data Cloud segment to help businesses customize generative AI applications using their own data sets.

Meanwhile, a slew of economic reports will be released today, including Durable Goods, New Home Sales, and data on Consumer Confidence. Also, Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) will release its Fiscal 2023 third quarter financials today, before the bell. On the macro front, the three-day event of ECB Forum on Central Banks 2023 kicked off yesterday, with global leaders sharing their thoughts on respective monetary policies. Markets will monitor Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s speech at the event tomorrow for any cues on future expectations.

Elsewhere, European indices are trading higher on Tuesday as traders closely follow the comments by leaders at the ECB Forum.  

Asia-Pacific Markets End Mixed on Tuesday

Asia-Pacific indices finished the trading session mixed today, following the tech sell-off in the U.S. markets. Chinese stocks rose on comments by Premier Li Qiang stating that Beijing will focus on expanding domestic demand and opening the Chinese markets with more effective policies in place.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index and China’s Shanghai Composite and Shenzhen Component indices finished higher by 1.88%, 1.23%, and 0.97%, respectively.

At the same time, Japan’s Nikkei and Topix indices ended down by 0.49% and 0.28%, respectively.

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