US Equity Indexes Gyrate Before Micron Technology Results; New-Home Sales Slump

US equity indexes traded mixed before Micron Technology's (MU) quarterly results, and government bond yields jumped after new-home sales plunged more than forecast in May.

The Nasdaq rose 0.2% to 17,775.2 after midday Wednesday, erasing earlier declines. The S&P 500 fell 0.1% to 5,464.5, giving up intraday gains. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was little changed to 39,129.5

Tesla (TSLA) jumped 4.1% and Amazon.com (AMZN) climbed 4.2%, underpinning consumer discretionary as the lone gainer among sectors. Energy posted the steepest decline.

After the bell Wednesday, quarterly results from Micron Technology (MU), a chipmaker, will add to the outlook for a global surge in the adoption of artificial intelligence. With Nvidia (NVDA) recently falling into correction territory, technology bulls need another catalyst to keep the rally going.

In economic news, US new-home sales plunged to a 619,000 annual rate in May from an upwardly revised 698,000 rate in April, below the 633,000 rate expected in a survey compiled by Bloomberg as of 7:55 am ET. Home sales sank almost 17% from a year earlier. The supply of homes for sale rose 1.5% to 481,000, up nearly 13% from a year ago.

The US 10-year yield soared 7.2 basis points to 4.31%, and the two-year rate climbed 5.8 basis points to 4.75%.

The US Dollar index advanced 0.4% to 106.03. Gold fell 0.9% to $2,310.51 an ounce.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil edged up 0.1% to $80.91 a barrel, clawing back declines.

US commercial crude oil stocks, excluding inventories in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, rose 3.6 million barrels last week following a decrease of 2.5 million in the previous week, compared with a 2.8 million drop expected in a survey compiled by Bloomberg as of 7:55 am ET.

In company news, FedEx (FDX) provided upbeat earnings guidance for fiscal 2025 as cost reduction efforts bolstered Q4 results. Shares surged 15%, the top gain on the S&P.

Moderna (MRNA) said its mRESVIA respiratory syncytial virus vaccine demonstrated a 50% efficacy after 18 months based on data from a pivotal phase 2/3 trial. Shares slumped 8.9%, the biggest drop on the Nasdaq.

Aptiv (APTV) shares slumped 10%, the largest drop on the S&P, after Piper Sandler downgraded its rating on the stock to underweight from neutral. The firm adjusted its price target on the stock to $63 from $78.