Tuesday’s Stock Market Open: US Equities Fall As Rally Takes Breather, Oil Slips

Update: 12:05 p.m. EDT

U.S. stocks turned mixed at noon as Nasdaq rose to positive territory.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 171.94 points to 26,115.09, while the S&P 500 fell 1.58 points to 3,178.14 and the Nasdaq Composite Index gained 54.91 points to 10,488.56.

In Europe markets finished lower, as Britain’s FTSE-100 retreated 1.53%, while France’s CAC-40 dropped 0.74% and Germany’s DAX fell 0.92%.

The number of available jobs in the U.S. rose to 5.4 million in May from 5 million in April, according to the Labor Department’s Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey.

Original story:

U.S. stocks dropped on Tuesday as recent rally took a pause one day after strength in tech shares drove Nasdaq to record highs.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 182.28 points to 26,104.75, while the S&P 500 fell 16.89 points to 3,162.83 and the Nasdaq Composite Index tumbled 19.45 points to 10,414.620.

The U.S. government awarded drugmaker Novavax (NVAX) a contract of $1.6 billion to develop a coronavirus vaccine.

Meanwhile, cases of covid-19 continued to spike in certain parts of the U.S., including Texas, which saw more than 8,000 hospitalizations on Sunday alone. California Gov. Gavin Newsom asked six more counties in his state to close their indoor businesses.

German industrial production rose by 7.8% in May, less than analysts’ expectations of 11.1% growth.

“While we expect continued [stock market] volatility, we think there are grounds for optimism that economies and markets can weather the recent acceleration in infections,” said Mark Haefele, chief investment officer at UBS. “There are signs that healthcare systems are coping better with COVID-19, reducing the need for restrictions on freedom of movement. Economic data continues to point to resilience.”

Overnight in Asia markets finished mixed, as China’s Shanghai Composite index edged up 0.37%; Japan’s Nikkei-225 slipped 0.44%; and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng exchange fell 1.38%.

In Europe markets traded lower, as Britain’s FTSE-100 retreated 1.52%, while France’s CAC-40 dropped 1.04% and Germany’s DAX fell 1.19%.

Crude oil futures fell 0.57% at $40.40 per barrel, Brent crude edged down 0.39% at $42.93. Gold futures slipped 0.24%.

The euro edged down 0.05% at $1.1303 while the pound sterling gained 0.34% at $1.2534.