Treasury Yields Rise as FOMC Meeting Minutes are Digested; Nvidia, Alibaba Shares Rally

U.S. Treasury yields rose Thursday as investors digested the latest Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting minutes and considered the outlook for the central bank's interest rate policy.[0] The 10-year yield ticked up 3 basis points to 3.95%, its highest since Nov. 9.[1] The 2-year yield also rose 1 basis point to 4.71%, its highest since July 24, 2007.[2]

The minutes from the Jan. 31-Feb. 1 meeting showed that while there were signs of inflation easing, central bank officials were still concerned about rising prices.[2] It was also observed that additional interest rate increases are probable. Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic and San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly will be speaking today at 10:50 a.m. and 2:00 p.m.[3] ET respectively, and their comments could provide further insight into the Fed's future rate hikes.

In the stock market, shares of NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA) rallied 8% pre-market after the chipmakers reported fourth quarter results late Wednesday that beat analyst estimates, even as gaming revenue nearly halved from last year.[0] The firm announced a collaboration with AI platforms, as enthusiasm for the technology rises, leading to optimism about its potential expansion.[0] Meanwhile, Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba (BABA) jumped 6% after the company unveiled better-than-expected quarterly results, benefitting from easing COVID-19 restrictions in the final three months of 2022.[0]

In individual stock moves, shares of Wingstop Inc. (WING) soared 9.5% Wednesday, after the operator of aviation-themed chicken-wing restaurants beat estimates for the fourth quarter by a comfortable margin.[4] On Thursday morning, shares of Nvidia Corporation (NVDA) soared 10% after the company reported results that exceeded analysts' expectations and raised its revenue outlook for the first quarter.[5] Meanwhile, Intel Corporation (INTC) shares declined 0.5% after the chip company announced Wednesday that it would cut its dividend.[6]

Looking ahead, investors will be eyeing the minutes of the FOMC meeting today, as well as earnings reports from Nvidia (NVDA), Lucid (LCID), Baidu (BIDU), and Etsy (ETSY). DocuSign (DOCU) closed down more than -7% after UBS downgraded the stock to sell, and Palo Alto Networks (PANW) posted a double-digit percentage gain after reporting better-than-expected quarterly results.[7]

0. “Stock market news today: Stock futures rise after back-to-back losses for S&P 500, Dow” Yahoo Money, 23 Feb. 2023, https://money.yahoo.com/stock-market-news-today-february-23-2023-122852056.html

1. “‘FOMO’ Rally Over: Dow Falls 700 Points—Biggest Plunge Of 2023” Forbes, 21 Feb. 2023, https://www.forbes.com/sites/dereksaul/2023/02/21/fomo-rally-over-dow-falls-600-points-biggest-plunge-of-2023/

2. “Treasury yields rise as investors assess Fed policy outlook” CNBC, 23 Feb. 2023, https://www.cnbc.com/2023/02/23/us-treasury-yields-investors-assess-fed-policy-outlook.html

3. “Federal Reserve Outlook Lifts Wall Street Pre-Bell; Europe Higher, Asia Mixed” msnNOW, 23 Feb. 2023, https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets/federal-reserve-outlook-lifts-wall-street-pre-bell-europe-higher-asia-mixed/ar-AA17QisS

4. “Dow rises nearly 100 points ahead of Fed minutes as stocks attempt bounce” MarketWatch, 22 Feb. 2023, https://www.marketwatch.com/story/u-s-stock-futures-unable-to-bounce-after-nearly-700-point-plunge-in-dow-industrials-f794c49d

5. “Dow Jones Futures Rise: Nvidia Earnings Lift Chips After S&P 500 Tests Critical Support | Investor's Business Daily” Investor's Business Daily, 23 Feb. 2023, https://www.investors.com/market-trend/stock-market-today/dow-jones-futures-nvidia-jumps-on-earnings-sp-500-tests-critical-support/

6. “Stock market today: Dow closes lower as Fed minutes keep rate-hike worries alive By Investing.com” Investing.com, 22 Feb. 2023, https://www.investing.com/news/stock-market-news/stock-market-today-dow-closes-lower-as-fed-minutes-keep-ratehike-worries-alive-3011078

7. “Stocks Sink As 10-Year T-Note Yield Rises To 3-1/4 Month High” Barchart, 21 Feb. 2023, https://www.barchart.com/story/news/14410202/stocks-sink-as-10-year-t-note-yield-rises-to-3-1-4-month-high

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