Stock market today: Indexes trade mixed as traders look to break out of 3-day slump

US stocks were mixed Thursday morning, as the market tried to break out of a three-day slump following this week’s bond sell-off.

The S&P 500 was up in early trades, though the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost over 100 points shortly after the opening bell.

Major indexes have struggled this week as bonds sold off and yields spiked. Traders have been adjusting their expectations for interest rate cuts. Yields edged lower on Thursday, with the 10-year Treasury bond yield down one basis point to 4.232%

A rise in tech stocks fueled the Nasdaq higher as Tesla reported strong earnings after market closed on Wednesday.

The carmaker reported earnings per share of $0.62, easily beating analysts’ expectations of $0.51, and announced that its Cybertruck has reached profitability. Its revenue, though, came in below slightly estimates.

“Plans for new vehicles, including more affordable models, remain on track for the start of production in the first half of 2025,” the company said.

Tesla stock surged 17% after the opening bell to trade at $250.30 a share.

Meanwhile, jobless claims last week fell unexpectedly to 227,000, a drop of 15,000 from the week before. That number comes in below consensus estimates of 242,000.

Here’s where US indexes stood shortly after the 9:30 a.m. opening bell on Thursday:

• S&P 500: 5,810.04, up 0.22%

• Dow Jones Industrial Average: 42,394.72, down 0.28% (-120.23 points)

• Nasdaq composite: 18,383.49, up 0.56%

Here’s what else is going on Thursday:

• The bond market is selling off as traders reassess the path of the Federal Reserve’s rate cut, with higher chances of rates remaining unchanged.

• Investors’ exposure to the S&P 500 is the highest since mid-2023 in a signal that’s previously preceded a 10% slump, Citi says.

• Apple stock tumbles after analyst says iPhone 16 orders cut by 10 million units, sees “no evidence” of AI boosting demand.

In commodities, bonds, and crypto:

• Oil futures were up. West Texas Intermediate crude rose 1% to $71.39 a barrel. Brent crude, the international benchmark, climbed 1% to $75.68 a barrel.

• Gold rose almost 1% to $2,753 an ounce.

• The 10-year Treasury yield fell one basis point to 4.323%.

• Bitcoin was up 1.4% to $66,707.