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S&P 500 slips ahead of key inflation data due tomorrow

The S&P 500 wavered on Monday as the rally that brought the major averages to record highs cooled off. Investors also looked ahead to fresh U.S. inflation data.

The broad S&P 500 slipped 0.11 per cent to 5,117.94. The Nasdaq Composite slid 0.41 per cent to 16,019.27, as technology stocks struggled. Both saw their second negative sessions in a row. The Dow Jones Industrial Average bucked the trend, adding 46.97 points, or 0.12 per cent, to finish at 38,769.66.

Information technology stock Super Micro Computer dropped more than 5 per cent, while chipmaker Nvidia fell 2 per cent. Both took a hit as investors question if stocks tied to artificial intelligence have more room to run after monster rallies.

Meta also struggled, with the Facebook parent tumbling 4.4 per cent. Outside of tech, pharmaceutical stock Eli Lilly dropped more than 3 per cent.

Those losses come as traders prepare for February’s consumer price index due Tuesday. Economists polled by Dow Jones anticipate CPI will rise 0.4 per cent between January and February and 3.1 per cent on an annualised basis. Excluding volatile food and energy prices, the so-called core basket is expect to increase 0.3 per cent on the month and 3.7 per cent on the year.

That comes ahead of the producer-focused index slated for later in the week. The pair is among the last major economic reports expected before Federal Reserve leaders convene for their March policy meeting.

Oil prices were mixed on Monday ahead of key February inflation data and reports on the global crude outlook from OPEC and the International Energy Agency. West Texas Intermediate settled at $77.93 a barrel, down 8 cents, while Brent settled at $82.21 a barrel, up 13 cents, following declines last week due to subdued demand in China and comments from the IEA about sufficient market supply this year.

Iron ore tumbled 6.8 per cent to $US107.35 a tonne in Singapore trading on Monday. Both gold and oil were relatively little changed.

Turning to US sectors, Materials was the best performer overnight and Industrials was the worst.
 
Futures

The SPI futures are pointing to a 0.1 per cent rise.

Currency

One Australian dollar at 8.40am was buying 66.12 US cents.

Commodities

Gold added 0.14 per cent. Silver gained 0.68 per cent. Copper rose 0.95 per cent. Oil lost 0.10 per cent.

Figures around the globe

European markets closed mixed. London’s FTSE added 0.12 per cent, Frankfurt lost 0.38 per cent, and Paris closed 0.10 per cent lower.

Turning to Asian markets, Tokyo’s Nikkei dropped 2.19 per cent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 1.43 per cent and China’s Shanghai Composite added 0.74 per cent..

Yesterday, the Australian share market closed 1.82 per cent lower at 7,704.22.

Ex-dividends
Blackwall Limited (ASX:BWF) is paying 2.5 cents fully franked
Grange Resources. (ASX:GRR) is paying 2 cents fully franked
IGO Limited (ASX:IGO) is paying 11 cents fully franked
Lifestyle Communit (ASX:LIC) is paying 5.5 cents fully franked
Motorcycle Hldg (ASX:MTO) is paying 3 cents fully franked
News Corp (ASX:NWS) is paying 10.7214 cents unfranked
PSC Insurance Ltd (ASX:PSI) is paying 5.7 60 per cent franked
Yancoal Aust Ltd (ASX:YAL) is paying 32.5 cents fully franked

Dividends payable
Codan Ltd (ASX:CDA)
McGrath Ltd (ASX:MEA)
Winton Land Ltd (ASX:WTN)

Sources: Bloomberg, FactSet, IRESS, TradingView, UBS, Bourse Data, Trading Economics, CoinMarketCap.

Disclaimer

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