Investing.com – U.S. stock futures were little changed in after-hours trade on Tuesday, steadying after Wall Street posted a dismal start to the second quarter amid uncertainty over the Federal Reserve’s plans to cut interest rates and the anticipation of key payroll data. influenced moods.
Investors also took gains in several high-growth sectors, especially technology, after U.S. stock indexes hit a series of record highs in the first quarter.
fell 0.02% to 5,259.50 and was down 0.01% to 18,328.75 by 7:11 pm ET (2311 GMT). fell 0.04% to 39,491.0 points.
Wall Street falls from March highs amid uncertainty over rate cuts
Futures steadied after Wall Street indexes posted two sessions of sharp losses as a series of hawkish comments from senior Fed officials led markets to dampen some expectations of an interest rate cut by the central bank.
While the Fed struck a somewhat dovish tone at its March meeting, multiple officials speaking after the meeting warned that persistent inflation and labor market strength would prevent the bank from cutting interest rates earlier this year.
February data remained volatile, while March data due this Friday is expected to show sustained strength in the labor market. That led traders to lower their expectations for a 25 basis point rate cut in June, according to .
Concerns about higher interest rates over the longer term sent Wall Street indexes tumbling from near-record highs over the past two sessions.
The index fell 0.7% to 5,205.81 on Tuesday, after falling nearly 1% to 16,240.24 on Tuesday. It performed worst among its peers, down 1% to 39,170.24 points.
Losses in technology and healthcare are significant
Losses in technology stocks were by far the biggest drag on Wall Street as Treasury yields also rose amid higher and longer interest rates.
Shares of artificial intelligence darling NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:) fell 0.3% in the aftermarket after falling nearly 10% from a record high reached in March.
Intel Corp. (NASDAQ:) shares fell 3.8% after it reported an operating loss for its foundry business of $7 billion through 2023 as it lost more business to Asian rivals including TSMC (NYSE:) and Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. (KS:).
Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:) shares fell 0.4%, extending losses after falling 4.9% on Tuesday after the electric vehicle maker recorded its first quarterly decline in deliveries in nearly four years.
Healthcare stocks include insurers Humana Inc. (NYSE:), UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:) and CVS Health Corp (NYSE:) stabilized trading in the secondary market after sharp losses on Tuesday. The losses came after the US government refused to raise payment rates for private Medicare plans.