Volatility In Markets Decreases; All Eyes on US Jobs Report

U.S. stocks settled lower on Thursday, recording losses for the fourth straight session.

The Federal Reserve, on Wednesday, increased interest rates by 75 basis points at its recent meeting. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell, meanwhile, said it’s very premature to think about pausing rate hikes.

Investors will keep an eye on the nonfarm payrolls report, scheduled for release today.

Economic data released Thursday showed initial jobless claims declined by 1,000 to 217,000 in the week ending October 29th, compared to market estimates of 220,000. However, the ISM services PMI dropped to 54.4 in October from 56.7 in the previous month.

Shares of QUALCOMM Incorporated QCOM dipped 7.7% on Thursday after the company issued Q1 guidance below estimates and lowered 2023 handset volumes outlook. Roku, Inc. ROKU shares dipped 4.6% after the company issued Q4 sales guidance below analyst estimates.

The Nasdaq 100 dipped 1.98% to close at 10,690.60 on Thursday, amid a decline in shares of Amazon.com, Inc. AMZN, Apple Inc. AAPL and Microsoft Corporation MSFT. The S&P 500 fell 1.06%, while the Dow Jones dropped around 147 points to settle at 32,001.25 in the previous session.

Major sectors on the S&P 500 closed on a mixed note, with communication services and information technology stocks recording the biggest plunge on Thursday. However, energy stocks moved higher by around 2% in the previous session.

The Chicago Board Options Exchange's CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) fell 1.8% to 25.39 points.

What is CBOE Volatility Index?

The CBOE Volatility Index, popularly known as VIX, is a measure of the equity market's expectation of volatility based on S&P 500 index call and put options.