The bulls may have won the day in the S&P 500 index futures, but it wasn’t without resistance and resulting chop from the bears.
The session began under the shadow of a declining premarket, hastening its descent upon breaching the 5200 threshold. Yet, it was at Friday’s closing level that the bulls found their footing, setting a floor for the day’s trading ahead of the opening bell.
The regular session’s initial chop gave way to a sustained bullish rally, gaining momentum as the market moved into positive territory. Despite encountering resistance near Monday’s high and chopping around for the majority of the afternoon, the bulls found their stride in the final stretch, propelling the index to conclude just shy of the new intraday high, up by a total of 27 handles at 5241.75.
The day’s trading dynamic was notably influenced by the anticipation surrounding Wednesday’s Federal Reserve rate decision at 2:00pm EST and subsequent remarks from Fed Chair Jerome Powell at 2:30pm EST.
Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL) stood out among the S&P 500’s leading components, charting a notable rise of $2.36 or 1.36% to end the day at $176.08.
That move notably outpaced the broader market’s performance of 0.56%.
Conversely, Tesla Inc (NASDAQ: TSLA) faced headwinds, retracting by $2.48 or 1.43% to close at $171.32. The electric vehicle maker’s decline contrasted with the day’s broader market trends, reflecting sector-specific challenges and investor reservations.
