U.S. stock indexes closed mostly lower Monday, pulling the S&P 500 slightly below the all-time high it set last week, while nudging the Dow Jones Industrial Average to another record high.
The S&P 500 slipped 0.1 percent, recovering most of a 0.8 percent slide earlier in the day. Banks had some of the sharpest losses amid worries about how much pain they’ll incur following soured trades made by a major U.S. hedge fund. Technology stocks also fell broadly as China announced more tax breaks to bolster its own chip sector. Gains for Facebook and other market heavyweights helped to limit the S&P 500’s losses.
Treasury yields rose. A widely followed measure of nervousness in the stock market climbed 10.4 percent. The VIX index, which shows how much volatility traders are bracing for from the S&P 500, remains close to its lowest level since the pandemic rocked markets a year ago.
“It’s high, which indicates people are nervous, but it’s not panicky,” said Tom Martin, senior portfolio manager with Globalt Investments.
The S&P 500 dropped 3.45 points to 3,971.09. The Dow rose 98.49 points, or 0.3 percent, to 33,171.37. The S&P 500 climbed to an all-time high last week. The Nasdaq lost 79.08 points, or 0.6 percent, to 13,059.65.
The Russell 2000 index of smaller company stocks fell more than the broader market, shedding 62.80 points, or 2.8 percent, to 2,158.68. The index is on track to close out March with its first monthly loss since September, though it has still racked up bigger gains so far this year than the other major indexes.
The market’s movements mark the latest ebb for Wall Street, which has been mostly climbing in a series of stops and starts. Supporting the market have been rising expectations that a supercharged economic recovery is on the way thanks to COVID-19 vaccinations, immense spending by the U.S. government and continued low rates from the Federal Reserve. Weighing on stocks at the same time, though, are worries about a coming rise in inflation and possibly too-ebullient prices across the market.
Several key reports on the economy are scheduled for this week, which could help show whether stocks deserve the lofty prices they’ve reached. Among the headliners is Friday’s jobs report, where economists expect to see a big acceleration in hiring.
On Wednesday, President Joe Biden will also give details about his proposal to rebuild roads, bridges and other infrastructure. Shares of raw-material producers have rallied recently on rising expectations for infrastructure spending by Washington, even though many past presidential administrations have failed to make it happen.
On Monday, though, the market’s spotlight was squarely on financial companies after Japanese bank Nomura Holdings and Swiss bank Credit Suisse said they’re facing potentially significant losses because of their dealings with a major client, though the exact magnitude is still unclear.
Nomura estimated the claim against its client could be about $2 billion.
Credit Suisse said that it “and a number of other banks” are exiting trades they made with a significant U.S.-based hedge fund, which defaulted on a “margin call” last week. A margin call happens when a broker tells a client to put up cash after it borrowed money to make trades. Neither Credit Suisse nor Nomura named the client, but news reports identified it as New York-based Archegos Capital Management.
Shares of Credit Suisse and Nomura each fell at least 16 percent in their home countries, and U.S. banks got caught in the downdraft as investors question whether the soured trades will stay isolated or have a more widespread effect through the system.
“This is sort of an example of the leverage you don’t see,” Martin said. “We all know there’s a fair amount of debt out there, but what we don’t know is how much of this is out there.”
Morgan Stanley fell 2.6 percent, and financial stocks across the S&P 500 lost 0.9 percent for one of the sharpest losses among the 11 sectors that make up the index.
Among the winners was Boeing, which rose 2.3 percent after Southwest Airlines said it will order 100 737 MAX airplanes. Regulators in the United States and other countries have cleared the plane model to resume flying, after it was grounded worldwide in 2019 after two crashes that killed 346 people.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 1.71 percent from 1.66 percent late Friday.
