US equity markets staged an impressive intra-session comeback overnight albeit there was no specific catalyst for the intraday turnaround - Dow up +99-points or +0.29%, logging its first advance in seven sessions and roaring back from an earlier -1,115 point or -3.25% tumble. It marked the biggest intra-day reversal for the Dow since the wild trading of March 2020. The broader S&P500 added +0.28% to 4,410.13 after falling ~4% and into official correction territory (down over >10% from its 3 January record closing high of 4,796.56) earlier in the session. The index staged its sharpest snapback after being down to end positive since 23 October, 2008. 17 stocks in the S&P500 recorded intra-day price swings of at least 10%, including Moderna Inc (down -1.7%) and Nvidia Corp (-0.01%). Consumer Discretionary rose +1.21% to lead eight if of the eleven primary sectors higher. Utilities (down -1.09%) brought up the rear. The S&P500 is still down -7.47% in January and on pace for its worst monthly performance since March 2020. The technology-centric Nasdaq settled +0.63% higher, snapping a four session losing streak and recovering from an earlier slump of as much as -4.9%. The session marked the first time since the aftermath of the financial crisis in 2008 that the Nasdaq Composite had been down more than >4% intraday and closed up. Netflix Inc (down -2.60%) continued to slide after reporting slowing subscriber growth after the close of last Thursday’s (20 January) session. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 rallied +2.29%. Kohl’s Corp soared +36.02% after the department store retailer confirmed that it had received buyout offer. The Wall Street Journal had reported over the weekend that a consortium backed by activist hedge fund Starboard Value LP has offered ~US$9B (or US$64 per share) to buy the department store chain.
