Svmuu U.S. stocks lacked a clear direction overall, but strong corporate earnings reports prompted Wall Street strategists to continue raising their S&P 500 targets, while the market is still assessing the uncertainty surrounding the duration of the Iran conflict. The S&P 500 index opened largely flat.
The strong performance of chip stocks continued to boost the benchmark index, with companies like Intel and Micron Technology standing out the most. The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 index edged up 0.2%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.1%. "The market still believes a ceasefire agreement will be reached," said Tom Esay, founder of Sevens Report, explaining why stocks did not see a larger sell-off after Trump stated that Iran's response to his proposal to end the war was "completely unacceptable." (Jinshi)