Most Stocks Recover from Oracle Sell-Off

Market Performance - The S&P 500 Index closed up by +0.21%, reaching a 6-week high, while the Dow Jones Industrials Index climbed to a new all-time high with a gain of +1.34%. The Nasdaq 100 Index, however, fell by -0.35% to a 1-week low [1][2][3]. Economic Indicators - US weekly initial unemployment claims rose by +44,000 to a 3-month high of 236,000, indicating a weaker labor market than the expected 220,000 [4]. - The US September trade deficit unexpectedly shrank to -$52.8 billion, contrary to expectations of a widening to -$63.1 billion, marking the smallest deficit in 5.25 years [4]. Corporate Earnings - The Q3 corporate earnings season is nearing completion, with 496 of the 500 S&P companies having reported results. Notably, 83% of these companies exceeded forecasts, leading to a +14.6% increase in earnings, significantly surpassing the expected +7.2% year-over-year growth [5]. Sector Performance - Managed healthcare stocks rallied, contributing positively to the overall market performance. Visa shares surged more than +6%, providing a boost to the Dow Jones Industrial Average [2]. - Conversely, Oracle's stock tumbled more than 10% after reporting Q2 cloud sales that missed estimates, raising concerns about tech valuations and the effectiveness of capital outlays on AI infrastructure [3].