US markets close higher, Pfizer falls 4%- Market recap

• The US stock market traded higher on Tuesday to record fresh gains after a largely muted Monday, with the uptick in sentiment coming on the back of more corporate earnings.

• Risk-on appetite was visibly stronger ahead of inflation data out Thursday, where analysts project consumer prices to rise by 7.3% in January.

US benchmarks ended in positive territory, with the Nasdaq composite up 1.28% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average 1.06% higher. The S&P 500 jumped 0.84% to highlight a slight reversal for stocks after Monday’s disappointment towards the close.

The positive close for US markets comes after European and Asian stocks had a mixed session Tuesday. In Europe, the pan-European Stoxx 600 index bounced just above the flatline, while UK’s FTSE 100 closed just in the red at -0.08%.

Investors await US CPI data

Stocks continue to have a volatile year, with optimism in February tempered by inflation concerns even as central banks take aggressive stances with rate hikes.

This week, the key data relates to US inflation. Projections are for consumer price index (CPI) data to surge by 7.3% in January, keeping inflation figures at their highest rate in nearly 40 years.

The Bank of England (BoE) raised interest rates last week, the second time after December’s surprise move. The US Federal Reserve is expected to execute the first hike in March and potentially go for five hikes in 2022.

Pfizer stock falls 4%

Pfizer, which reported its Q4 results on Tuesday, fell 4% following revenue that came in lower than analyst estimates. The drugmaker however saw Covid-19 vaccine sales hit $12.5 billion to top expectations. At close, the PFE stock was priced at $51.70, about 2.8% down.

Earnings season continues and several companies have reported strong earnings and revenue, to beat consensus estimates.

Apple Inc, Microsoft Corp, and Amazon have been some of the strong performers, while fourth-quarter results and revenue guidance from Meta Platforms, Netflix and Peloton have been some of the standout misses.