FX.co ★ U.S. Stocks Finish Lackluster Session Narrowly Mixed

The stock market saw indeterminate fluctuations throughout Tuesday's trading day, with investors hesitant following the intense selling seen during the previous two sessions. The key indexes varied in performance before finally closing with limited changes.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 63.86 points, or 0.2%, ending at 37,798.97. This slight incline brought an end to its six-day losing run. However, the Nasdaq declined by 19.77 points, or 0.1%, closing at 15,865.25, while the S&P 500 dipped by 10.41 points, or 0.2%, to finish at 5,051.41.

The minor rise in the Dow was spurred on by a 5.2% surge in UnitedHealth's shares. The healthcare insurance heavyweight witnessed a rise in the share price after it reported first quarter earnings that exceeded analysts' predictions on both revenues and profits.

However, a 2.1% fall in Johnson & Johnson's shares restrained the Dow's climb despite the healthcare firm also posting higher-than-expected first quarter earnings.

The overall performance within the broader markets was largely undecided, as investors evaluated whether to invest in lower-priced stocks or hold concerns about the forecast for interest rates.

The yield on the ten-year Treasury note hit a nearly six-month peak after the Federal Reserve reported a rising trend in U.S. industrial production for March. The Fed revealed a 0.4% increase in industrial output, mirroring February's revised growth and aligning with economists' predictions.

Adding to anxieties about interest rates, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell hinted that interest rates might stay higher for a prolonged period due to the continued shortfall in reaching the central bank's inflation target.

Banking stocks largely underperformed on this day, with Bank of America falling 3.5% after announcing a dip in year-on-year earnings for the first quarter, despite beating analysts' predictions.

Vulnerable to interest rate changes, the utilities, telecom, housing, and commercial real estate stocks also largely declined. In contrast, computer hardware and semiconductor stocks demonstrated an increase.

Looking at global markets, Asia-Pacific region endured significant losses during Tuesday's trading. The Nikkei 225 Index in Japan plummeted by 1.9%, and the Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong slumped by 2.1%. Major European markets, including the UK's FTSE 100 Index, Germany's DAX Index, and the French CAC 40 index, also experienced sharp declines.

In the bond market, treasuries continued their downward trend, resulting in the yield on the benchmark ten-year note increasing by 3.1 basis points to 4.659%.

Trading activity may be muted on Wednesday due to a relatively quiet day in the U.S. economic calendar. However, the Federal Reserve's Beige Book release may gain some investor interest.