Stock markets sell off as 2022 fatigue, Tesla drama weigh on investors

By Daniel Shvartsman

Investing.com -- Stock markets chopped lower in mid-day trading Tuesday, as tech led the market lower much as it has through the rest of 2022.

The S&P 500 lost .15% as of 13:15 ET (18:15 GMT) in Tuesday trading, at 3838. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 121 points or .36%, while the Nasdaq Composite was down nearly 1%. The Russell 2000 was down only .1% in Tuesday trading.

The Nasdaq continued its performance as the leading U.S. market loser in 2022, a switch from its post Great Financial Crisis dominance. Tax-loss selling and momentum could be dragging it down further, but one of its biggest stocks also acted as a deadweight. Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) is a (large) microcosm of that negative momentum effect, as the electric vehicle maker dropped 8.2% in afternoon trading, amid news that it was reducing production at its Shanghai plant. This would mark the 14th down day in 16 for the market leader, and a drop of over 40% for the month of December if prices hold. China-based EV rival Nio (NYSE:NIO) was down 8.5% after its own underwhelming Investor Day and delivery guidance cut.

Perhaps following Tesla down among growth favorites was Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) (-5.8%) as well as solar sector players such as Enphase Energy Inc (NASDAQ:ENPH) (-5.6%) and SolarEdge Technologies Inc (NASDAQ:SEDG) (-5.2%). Moderna Inc (NASDAQ:MRNA) meanwhile was the biggest loser on the S&P 500, down 8.5% in afternoon trading.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) dropped 4.6% amid heavy flight cancellations due to rough weather in the U.S. Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) was down 1.2%, setting a new 52-week low during the day, even as JPMorgan reported that supply times for the iPhone are improving.

Wynn Resorts (NASDAQ:WYNN) and Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) rose 4.8% and 4.1% respectively amid news that China was reducing requirements on inbound travelers to the country, dropping a mandatory quarantine period for just a negative PCR test. Alibaba (NYSE:BABA) (+4%), JD.com (NASDAQ:JD) (+3.8%) and Pinduoduo (NASDAQ:PDD) (+1.9%) also rode this wave higher.

Crude Oil WTI Futures rose 1.2% and Brent Oil Futures 1.3%, perhaps also on the back of the China news. Natural gas was up 3.2% as the impact from that heavy weather across the U.S. was still being assessed.

The US Dollar Index dipped .1% in Tuesday trading, with the EUR/USD about flat and gold riding up 1% to continue a hot year-end streak. Bitcoin drifted down .9% to 16668.

United States 10-Year treasuries traded up 2.8% to 3.845%.

Read also: Top Wall Street strategists give their S&P 500 forecasts for 2023

(This article was published at 10:27 am ET (15:27 GMT), updated later in the day)