Major US stock indexes finished trading mostly in positive territory

Major US stock indices predominantly increased as the fall in the conglomerate sector was offset by the growth in the utility sector.

Alphabet (GOOG) shares plummeted by 7.58% after the company showed quarterly revenue of $ 36.34 billion against an expected $ 37.33 billion. According to the company, the reason for lower revenue was a slowdown in Google advertising sales.

The negative dynamics of GOOG shares provoked the fall of most other shares of the popular FAANG group: Facebook (FB), Amazon (AMZN) and Apple (AAPL). It is also worth noting that Apple will publish its quarterly report today after the close of the trading session.

Investors also analyzed the latest news about the US-China trade negotiations. White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney said Tuesday that the situation with the Trump administration’s trade negotiations with China will be resolved over the next two weeks.

In addition, the focus of market participants was data on consumer confidence and pending home sales in the US. As reported in the Conference Board, their consumer confidence index improved markedly in April after it recorded a decline in March. According to the organization’s report, the index now stands at 129.2 (1985 = 100), compared with 124.2 in January (revised from 124.1). Analysts had expected the index to grow only to 126.0. At the same time, the current situation index - based on consumers' assessment of current business and labor market conditions - increased from 163.0 to 168.3, and the expectations index - based on short-term consumer forecasts for income, business and labor market conditions - improved from 98.3 to 103.0.

At the same time, a report published by the National Association of Realtors (NAR) showed that pending home sales in the US jumped in March much more than expected. According to the report, the index of pending home sales rose by 3.8% in March to 105.8, after falling by 1% to 101.9 in February. Economists had expected the index to increase by 1.1%. Despite the monthly rebound, in annual terms, the index still shows a decline of 1.2%. It is worth emphasizing, the annual decline is fixed for the 15th consecutive month.

Most of the components of DOW finished trading in positive territory (19 out of 30). The growth leader was Pfizer Inc. (PFE; + 2.86%). Outsider were UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (UNH; -1.83%)

Most sectors of the S & P recorded a decline. The largest decline was shown by the conglomerate sector (-3.2%). The utility sector grew the most (+ 1.3%).

At the time of closing:

Dow 26,592.91 +38.52 +0.15%

S & P 500 2,945.83 +2.80 +0.10%

Nasdaq 100 8,107.77 -54.09 -0.66%