The S&P 500 index futures began Thursday’s session with noticeable optimism in the overnight and premarket hours, maintaining a positive stance.
However, the release of December’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) data at 8:30am EST changed the market’s trajectory. The data, showing a year-over-year CPI of 3.4% against an expected 3.2%, triggered an immediate selloff.
Despite the initial negative reaction to the CPI data, the bulls managed to regroup, nudging the index into positive territory by the opening bell. However, this bullish momentum was short-lived. Shortly after the market opened, the bears gained the upper hand, pushing the index sharply downwards, approaching Tuesday’s low around lunchtime. The lowest point reached was 4772.75, where the bulls managed initiate a rally, spurred on by dovish fedspeak.
The day’s trading pattern formed a pronounced V-shaped recovery, with the bulls driving the index back into the green. Yet, this recovery faltered in the final hour as the index retreated once again into the red, ending the day with a slight decrease of 4.75 handles, closing at 4815.50.
Broadcom, Inc. (NASDAQ: AVGO) stood out as the day’s most significant gainer among the top S&P 500 components. The semiconductor company saw an increase of $19.41 or 1.80%, closing the session at $1099.98.
This performance was nearly two percent better than the cash index’s marginal loss of 0.04%.
Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) continued its downward trend, marking its third consecutive day as the biggest loser among the top components. The electric vehicle manufacturer’s stock declined by $6.72 or 2.87%, closing at $227.22. This decline followed news that Hertz was selling a significant portion of its EV fleet, primarily comprised of Teslas.
