Indexes: Dow down 0.5%, S&P 500 down 0.1%, Nasdaq down 0.1%.
NEW YORK Jan 6, Reuters -- The S&P 500 ended a volatile session close to unchanged on Thursday, as technology shares fell but financials lent support a day after the market sold off on a hawkish slant in Federal Reserve minutes.
The S&P 500 financials index increased by 1.6%, extending the strong gains this week. Other economically sensitive sectors also advanced. Since December 31 energy went up more than 9%, the energy gained 2.3% and is up more than 9%.
Banks were among the top performers among financials, with the S&P 500 bank index up 2.6% following a rise in the benchmark U.S. 10 year Treasury yield, which touched its highest level since April 2021. Higher interest rates can increase profit margins for banks and financial firms.
The shares of Meta Platforms went up by 2.6%, the biggest boost to the S&P 500 and Nasdaq.
The Dow ended up down 0.5% and the heavily weighted S&P 500 technology sector was a minuscule 0.5%. On Wednesday, the tech sector was the biggest drag on the S&P 500 when minutes from the Fed's December meeting signaled the possibility of sooner-than-expected interest rate hikes.
The Fed minutes cited a very tight job market and unabated inflation, increasing investor unease ahead of Friday's monthly jobs report from the U.S. Labor Department.
Bill Northey, senior investment director at U.S. Bank Wealth Management, said we have a jobs report tomorrow, which continues to be a focal area for the market in terms of the progression of the labor market.
A private payrolls report on Wednesday was stronger than expected.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 170.64 points, or 0.47%, to 36,236. The S&P 500 lost 4.53 points, or 0.10%, to 4,696 on 47. The Nasdaq Composite and the 05 dropped 19.31 points, or 0.13%, to 15,080. This week, investors have mainly moved out of technology-heavy growth shares and into more value-oriented stocks that tend to do better in a high interest-rate environment.
The S&P 500 value index was up 0.1% on Thursday, compared to a 0.3% decline in its growth counterpart.
Netflix Inc. ended up down 2.5% after J.P. Morgan cut its price target on the movie streaming platform's stock.
The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits went up last week, according to data released by the government on Thursday. U.S. services industry activity slowed more than expected in December, but supply bottlenecks appeared to be easing.
A 1.13 to 1 ratio on the Nasdaq favored decliners, as a forward-facing issue outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by 1.07 to 1 ratio.
The S&P 500 had 32 new 52 week highs and 2 new lows, while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 78 new highs and 492 new lows.
The U.S. exchange volume was 11.10 billion shares, compared to the 10.4 billion average for the full session over the last 20 trading days.