At the close of trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average index declined 55.20 points or 0.16% to 33,745. The S&P 500 was down 0.81 points or 0.02% to 4,128. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index fell 50.19 points or to 0.36% 13,850.
Big banks, including JPMorgan Chase & Co and Goldman Sachs Group Inc, are set to kick off first-quarter earnings season this week, likely providing a snapshot of the overall health of major U.S. corporations a year into the COVID crisis and perhaps providing insight into ongoing risks in financial markets.
Fed Chairman Powell said in a Sunday 60 Minutes interview that the economy is going to start growing strongly in the second half of the year but emphasized that that rebound shouldn't lead anyone to believe that the central bank would dial up interest rates in 2021.
Among the 11 major S&P 500 sector indexes, communication services and energy shares were the steepest decliners. The financials and consumer discretionary sector surged, reflecting confidence in both areas as the U.S. economy reopens.
Shares of Nuance Communications Inc surged after Microsoft Corp said it would buy the artificial intelligence and speech technology company in a $19.7 billion deal.
The dollar slipped toward a three-week low as Treasury yields remained just above recent lows, while oil prices rose on optimism over a rebound in the U.S. economy as coronavirus vaccinations accelerated.
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