NEW YORK REPORT
THE S&P 500 rose yesterday as investors hunted for bargains a day after a steep sell-off, but another delay for Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner kept the Dow in the red.
Shares that led the market down on Monday, when the market suffered its worst one-day loss in two months, were among the positive influences, including banks, energy and materials.
JPMorgan Chase shares rose 2.1 per cent to $33.57 after falling 6.1 per cent on Monday, while Bank of America gained 2.4 per cent to $12.23 a day after sliding 9.7 per cent. Shares of Chevron rose 0.3 per cent to $65.96 after losing 3.4 per cent on Monday.
Boeing’s stock fell 6.5 per cent.
There was also market caution a day ahead of the Federal Reserve’s assessment of economic conditions in the US.
“The market’s really trying to stabilise after a pretty sharp decline yesterday,” said Michael Sheldon, chief market strategist of RDM Financial.
Energy shares also got a boost from a 2.6 per cent gain in US oil futures prices.
The Dow Jones industrial average was down 16.10 points, or 0.19 per cent, at 8,322.91. But the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index was up 2.06 points, or 0.23 per cent, at 895.10. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 1.27 points, or 0.07 per cent, at 1,764.92.
The broad S&P 500 index dropped back into negative territory for the year on Monday. Although the index is up about 32 per cent from a 12-and-a-half-year low hit in early March, it had been up as much as 40 per cent.