The Dow Jones Industrial was up 0.12% at the close. and amounted to 38,769.66 points. The S&P 500 lost 0.11% at the end of the day. and amounted to 5,117.94 points. The Nasdaq Composite fell 0.41%. and closed the session at 16,019.27 points. The Russell 2000 index of small-cap companies lost 0.81%. and amounted to 2,065, 88 points. The VIX volatility index increased by 3.26%, to 15.22 points.
There are concerns about the very high concentration of the seven largest companies
This week, investors are waiting for CPI data in the US, which will be released on Tuesday at 1:30 p.m. Polish time. “Friday's U.S. jobs report reinforced the feeling that Tuesday's inflation reading may be a little higher, which is another reason why we had a pullback from European assets this morning,” said Ben Laidler, global markets strategist at eToro.
Amelie Derambure, senior multi-asset portfolio manager at Amundi, assessed that Monday's deterioration in stock market sentiment may result from uncertainty about the economic prospects and high stock valuations. “There are some elements in the macro outlook that are perhaps not as clear as you might think,” she said.
According to JPMorgan Chase strategists, valuations of large technology companies are currently lower compared to other companies from the S&P 500 index than the average over the last five years. While the bank's strategists, led by Mislav Matejko, say the top seven companies are not immune to future earnings disappointments, they could still outperform traditional cyclicals if earnings deteriorate across the economy. “There are concerns about the very high concentration of the seven largest companies. However, we note that the group's performance is currently less tight than it was a few years ago in terms of profit delivery,” JPMorgan strategists said.
Boeing lost 3%. after Alaska Airlines said Saturday it was cooperating with the U.S. Department of Justice in a criminal investigation into a Boeing 737 MAX door failure during a January flight. Cryptocurrency and blockchain-related companies including Coinbase Global, Riot Platforms and Marathon Digital rose several percent each as bitcoin hit a new record high.
On the oil market, WTI contracts for April are up by 0.09%. to USD 78.09 per barrel, and May Brent futures increase by 0.41%. up to USD 82.42/b.
