The most accurate way to describe the price action in the S&P 500 index is that it cannot hold a rally. After the low for the move was defended early in the session, which happens to be a 23 month low, the bulls took control for a few hours.
After retreating from the intraday high, the Bank Of England stuck a fork in the rally when it gave British pension funds three days to rebalance their portfolios. Nothing like sticking their feet to fire in a volatile market.
As a result, the index which had been in the green by over 25 handles at the intraday high retreated to barely make a new low intraday low. That marked a 71.25 intraday swing which does not happen that often. The index regained its composure in the final half hour and was to trim its losses for the session to 26 handles, which matches the lowest close for the move.
Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) shrugged off the malaise and was the biggest winner of the components of the index. For the session, the issue gained $2.32 or 1.45% to close at $162.73.
That was 2% better than the cash index’s decline of 0.72%.
Meta Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ: META), which was downgraded by Atlantic Equities, was the biggest loser of the top components of the index. For the session, the issue declined $5.25 or 3.9%.
