US stocks showed mixed performance on Thursday as strong third-quarter earnings from Tesla fueled a rise in Nasdaq-100 futures.
The electric vehicle maker’s surprising results lifted investor sentiment for technology stocks, pushing the tech-heavy Nasdaq up by 0.76% by the close. In contrast, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 0.33% amid declines in shares of IBM, which saw its biggest drop in months due to underwhelming revenue.
Tesla’s nearly 22% surge marked its best performance in over a decade, adding approximately $100 billion to its valuation. CEO Elon Musk outlined a positive outlook for vehicle deliveries in 2024, which investors embraced, viewing it as a signal of strong future growth.
Meanwhile, US Treasury yields saw a decline as the 10-year yield dipped to 4.19%, easing from a three-day rise. This came as investors adjusted their expectations around potential Federal Reserve interest rate cuts following solid US economic data.
Beyond the tech sector, earnings reports from other major companies impacted various indexes. UPS reported better-than-expected results, buoying its stock price by 8.6%, while Southwest Airlines and Capital One released promising figures. IBM and Boeing, however, faced setbacks that weighed on the Dow.
In Europe, stocks were broadly up, with the STOXX Europe 600 and Germany’s DAX rising amid positive earnings from companies like Barclays and Unilever. Yields on European bonds, such as Germany’s 10-year yield, fell in response to continued economic stagnation across the eurozone, adding to an overall positive sentiment in the region’s equity markets.
Asian markets finished mixed as China’s CSI 300 index dipped 1.12% due to economic uncertainty, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 inched up 0.10%, supported by a weak yen benefiting exporters. Additionally, fresh US economic data on Thursday, including jobless claims and home sales reports, gave investors insight into the economy’s resilience and potential inflation trends, which could impact the Fed’s rate policy.
With input from the Wall Street Journal, Fortune, the Street.
