Market snapshot: investors taking money off the table

There are plenty of nerves ahead of the Federal Reserve meeting on Wednesday, as investors continue to assess tech sector performance and with tariffs still an overhang. ii's head of markets has the latest. 

19th March 2025 09:03

by Richard Hunter from interactive investor

Share on

America chart trading stock wall street 600

      The US rally proved to be short-lived, with mega cap growth stocks in the eye of the storm again as investors took more money off the tech table.

      After two days of gains following a painful week, the main indices succumbed, pushing the benchmark S&P500 towards correction territory for what would be the second time in a week. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq remains firmly in correction mode, with another markdown piling more pressure on Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) shares. Another 5% decline leaves the stock down by 41% in the year to date, suffering from the double whammy of cooling sentiment towards its CEO and other competitors beginning to eat its lunch.

      Elsewhere, NVIDIA Corp (NASDAQ:NVDA) shares fell by almost 3.5% and are now 16.5% down so far this year, as the start of its GTC event failed to inspire confidence, even as the company announced a partnership with General Motors Co (NYSE:GM) for self-driving cars and declared that the AI space is at an inflection point. The shock of the DeepSeek experience is still fresh in the mind, leading to question marks over the group’s expensive chips compared to some competitors.

      The weakness spread across each of the main indices, indicating the current skittishness of investors. The declines came despite some economic data which might otherwise have been well-received, with the construction of new homes rising by more than 11% in February and with industrial production climbing by 0.7% against expectations of a 0.3% increase. While this data indicates that pressure on the economy is currently being held at bay, the clamour surrounding the White House decisions so far is set to grow louder as the year progresses.

      For the moment, however, the Trump tariff trauma is taking a breather, although another acid test will come on 2 April when the tariff exemption deadline for Canada and Mexico is set to expire.

      Instead, investors will switch attention to the Federal Reserve today and in particular its current outlook. A no-change decision has been fully priced in by the market, but the accompanying comments will be of special interest, especially if the Fed’s inflation projections are changed. There could also be an acknowledgement of increased uncertainty and downgraded GDP growth, with the next rate cut not currently expected until June, and with consensus split as to whether there will be one or two reductions over the course of the year.

      The latest market stumble leaves the main indices struggling to find any form, and in the year to date the Dow Jones has drifted by 2.3% and the S&P500 by 4.5%, while the Nasdaq is at the bottom of the performance table with a 9.4% decline. 

      Amid the noise, Asian markets were mixed with Japan coming back into focus overnight. As expected, the central bank left rates unchanged, although it warned of the “high uncertainties” to come, which briefly lifted the Nikkei, where exporters form a large presence. Indeed, separate data revealed a trade surplus for February, with exports rising by more than 11%, suggesting that going into the tariff turbulence the economy remains in decent shape – for the moment.

      A general level of lethargy descended on the London market, with investors pondering when the next trauma may come. The fall came despite a well-received set of numbers from insurer M&G Ordinary Shares (LSE:MNG), which exceeded estimates for both its solvency ratio as well as adjusted operating pre-tax profit. The shares rose by over 4% and interest in the sector will be echoed tomorrow as the market reacts to overnight annual results from the group’s former bedfellow Prudential (LSE:PRU)

      However, for the most part there was broad markdown of well-established names with some investors potentially taking profits on some of the best performing shares of late, such as Barclays (LSE:BARC) and International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (LSE:IAG), whose shares have risen by 71% and 80% respectively over the last year.

      Despite the dip, the FTSE100 remains ahead by 6% so far this year, although the FTSE250 is still struggling to retain its earlier strong performance, with the latest decline leaving the index 2.7% lower.

      These articles are provided for information purposes only.  Occasionally, an opinion about whether to buy or sell a specific investment may be provided by third parties.  The content is not intended to be a personal recommendation to buy or sell any financial instrument or product, or to adopt any investment strategy as it is not provided based on an assessment of your investing knowledge and experience, your financial situation or your investment objectives. The value of your investments, and the income derived from them, may go down as well as up. You may not get back all the money that you invest. The investments referred to in this article may not be suitable for all investors, and if in doubt, an investor should seek advice from a qualified investment adviser.

      Full performance can be found on the company or index summary page on the interactive investor website. Simply click on the company's or index name highlighted in the article.

      Related Categories

        UK sharesNorth AmericaEuropeAsia PacificJapan

      Get more news and expert articles direct to your inbox