Nasdaq Seeing Further Downside But Dow Regaining Ground

After ending the previous session in negative territory, the major U.S. stock indexes are turning in a mixed performance during trading on Wednesday.

While the tech-heavy Nasdaq is showing another notable move to the downside, the Dow has moved back to the upside.

The Nasdaq fell to a new low for the session in recent trading and is currently down 306.14 points or 1.3 percent at 22,949.04.

The S&P 500 is also down 28.52 points or 0.4 percent at 6,889.29, while the narrower Dow is up 266.32 points or 0.5 percent at 49,507.31.

The advance by the Dow comes amid a sharp increase by shares of Amgen (AMGN), as the biotech company is surging by 6.5 percent after reporting better than expected fourth quarter results.

Strong gains by 3M (MMM), Nike (NKE) and Disney (DIS) are also contributing to the rebound by the blue chip index.

Meanwhile, weakness among technology stocks continues to weigh on the Nasdaq, with semiconductor stocks showing a substantial move to the downside.

The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index has plunged by 3.9 percent, pulling back further off the record closing high set last Thursday.

Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) has helped lead the sector lower, plummeting by 15.8 percent after reporting better than expected fourth quarter results but providing first quarter guidance that disappointed some analysts.

Computer hardware and networking stocks are also seeing considerable weakness, while gold stocks are turning in some of the worst performances outside the tech sector despite an increase by the price of the precious metal.

On the other hand, housing stocks are extending the rally seen in the previous session, driving the Philadelphia Housing Sector Index up by 3.0 percent.

Pharmaceutical stocks are also seeing significant strength on the day, moving notably higher along with energy, airline and banking stocks.

In U.S. economic news, payroll processor ADP released a report showing private sector employment in the U.S. increased by much less than expected in the month of January.

ADP said private sector employment rose by 22,000 jobs in January after climbing by a downwardly revised 37,000 jobs in December.

Economists had expected private sector employment to grow by 45,000 jobs compared to the addition of 41,000 jobs originally reported for the previous month.

A separate report released by the Institute for Supply Management showed its reading on U.S. service sector activity came in unchanged in the month of January.

The ISM said its services PMI came in at 53.8 in January, unchanged from a revised reading in December. A reading above 50 indicates growth in the sector.

Economists had expected the services PMI to edge down to 53.5 from the 54.4 originally reported for the previous month.

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance on Wednesday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index decreased by 0.8 percent, while China’s Shanghai Composite Index advanced by 0.9 percent.

The major European markets have also turned mixed on the day. While the German DAX Index is down by 0.5 percent, the French CAC 40 Index and the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index are both up by 1.3 percent.

In the bond market, treasuries continue to show a lack of direction after ending the previous session roughly flat. Currently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is up by less than a basis point at 4.275 percent.

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