US close: Stocks rangebound but S&P 500, Nasdaq hit fresh highs

(Sharecast News) - US stocks finished mixed again on Tuesday with markets rangebound amid global geopolitical uncertainty and a surge in oil prices - though the S&P 500 and Nasdaq still managed to close at record highs. The S&P 500 edged 0.05% higher to a new peak of 6,049.88, while the Nasdaq gained 0.4% to a fresh high of 19,480.91. However, the Dow fell for the second straight day after hitting a record on Friday, slipping 0.2% to 44,705.28.

Oil prices, which were already higher ahead of this week's OPEC+ meeting, jumped in afternoon trade after South Korea's president Yoon Suk Yeol declared emergency martial law, arguing that it was needed to defend the country from communists in North Korea. West Texas Intermediate crude was up 2.8% at $69.97 a barrel.

"South Korea's sudden political instability led to an around 2% rise in the oil price due to supply concerns as traders were already buying the black gold ahead of this week's OPEC+ meeting at which continued output cuts are expected to be announced," said IG senior technical analyst Axel Rudolph.

President Yoon later backed down and lifted the martial law with the withdrawal of the military from government buildings after MPs voted to block the move.

Back on home soil, US job openings rose to 7.74m in October, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, up from a downwardly revised 7.37m in September and above market expectations for a reading of 7.48m. Meanwhile, the number of hires and total separations was little changed at 5.3m, with quits at 3.3m and layoffs and discharges at 1.6m.

Market movers

Stocks with heavy exposure to South Korea fell, including ADS shares of Korea Electric Power, ecommerce group Coupang, steel maker Posco and telecoms firm KT Corporation.

US Steel tanked after Donald Trump said he would move to prevent Nippon Steel taking over the American manufacturer.

AT&T rose strongly after announcing plans to distribute $40bn to shareholders over the next three years as it pursues targets to expand America's largest fibre network to 50m total locations by 2029.

Microsoft finished flat after the news that it is facing a £1bn antitrust lawsuit in the UK regarding how its cloud customers are charged.

Shares in AI server business Super Micro Computer traded higher on the back of news that a special committee had found "no evidence of misconduct" at the firm.

Dow Jones - Risers

Apple Inc. (AAPL) $242.63 1.27% Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $101.85 1.23% Walmart Inc. (WMT) $93.51 0.94% McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $294.50 0.70% Home Depot Inc. (HD) $429.54 0.60% International Business Machines Corporation (CDI) (IBM) $228.73 0.59% Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $331.43 0.13% Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $278.45 0.13% Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $602.17 0.08% Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $431.23 0.06%

Dow Jones - Fallers

Intel Corp. (INTC) $22.48 -6.06% Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $175.42 -2.38% Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $152.36 -1.58% 3M Co. (MMM) $131.15 -1.31% Visa Inc. (V) $313.01 -1.15% Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $260.59 -1.11% Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) $43.93 -1.01% Boeing Co. (BA) $155.00 -0.98% Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $399.26 -0.81% Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $116.45 -0.61%

S&P 500 - Risers

AT&T Inc. (T) $23.74 4.58% Sysco Corp. (SYY) $79.49 4.22% Meta Platforms Inc. (META) $613.67 3.52% CF Industries Holdings Inc. (CF) $94.14 3.50% Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (WTW) $329.27 2.74% CME Group Inc. (CME) $240.76 2.19% Estee Lauder Co. Inc. (EL) $77.48 1.97% Blackrock Inc. (BLK) $1,038.97 1.85% News Corp Class B (NWS) $32.80 1.74% Eli Lilly and Company (LLY) $813.33 1.69%

S&P 500 - Fallers

Nektar Therapeutics (NKTR) $1.07 -9.32% Microchip Technology Inc. (MCHP) $65.37 -7.03% Intel Corp. (INTC) $22.48 -6.06% FedEx Corp. (FDX) $282.85 -4.66% Seagate Technology Plc (STX) $98.81 -4.22% AFLAC Inc. (AFL) $106.94 -4.00% Foot Locker Inc. (FL) $24.17 -3.86% Eversource Energy (ES) $61.31 -3.71% CenturyLink Inc. (LUMN) $6.74 -3.58% Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd (NCLH) $27.38 -3.42%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Trip.com Group Limited (TCOM) $68.04 4.28% Meta Platforms Inc. (META) $613.67 3.52% Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. (CHKP) $187.21 2.76% Workday, Inc. (WDAY) $256.95 2.19% Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $99.87 1.34% Amazon.Com Inc. (AMZN) $213.41 1.28% Apple Inc. (AAPL) $242.63 1.27% Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $140.26 1.18% Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) $167.68 1.04% Cadence Design Systems Inc. (CDNS) $313.42 1.02%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Microchip Technology Inc. (MCHP) $65.37 -7.03% Intel Corp. (INTC) $22.48 -6.06% Qurate Retail Inc. (QRTEA) $0.42 -4.78% Seagate Technology Plc (STX) $98.81 -4.22% Illumina Inc. (ILMN) $140.79 -3.00% Biomarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (BMRN) $63.21 -2.81% Wynn Resorts Ltd. (WYNN) $93.75 -2.51% Western Digital Corp. (WDC) $71.75 -2.29% Texas Instruments Inc (TXN) $197.21 -2.26% DENTSPLY Sirona Inc. (XRAY) $19.39 -2.19%