US stocks closed mixed on Tuesday — the first day of a short trading week — as investors weigh the likelihood of Congress passing a tentative plan this week to lift the country's debt ceiling and avoid a potential default on government obligations.
The Dow closed down 51 points, or 0.2%. The S&P 500 was flat. The Nasdaq Composite gained 0.3%.
President Joe Biden and Republican House Leader Kevin McCarthy reached a spending deal over the weekend to raise the debt limit. The House is expected to vote on the bill as soon as Wednesday.
Wall Street appears hopeful that the plan will pass and some powerhouse banking CEO's are urging Congress to accept the deal. The Financial Services Forum, a trade group whose members include Citigroup CEO Jane Fraser, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon and Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon, issued a statement Tuesday in support of the bipartisan agreement.
But investors will be watching the proceedings closely, as some lawmakers have expressed discontent with the deal. Republican and Democratic votes are both needed to pass the bill.
Chipmaker Nvidia, meanwhile, briefly became the ninth company in history to achieve a market cap of $1 trillion. Shares of the stock reached a high of more than $419 per share in trading Tuesday, boosting the total value of the company into the trillion-dollar range before falling back below the threshold.
The company, which makes chips used in artificial intelligence, saw its shares soar after it beat earnings expectations and posted strong guidance for the year ahead. Shares of the stock closed at $401, just short of the $404.86 needed to retain its trillion-dollar market cap.
Tesla shares surged by 4.1% Tuesday as CEO Elon Musk made his first visit to China in about three years. Musk is expected to visit Tesla’s plant in Shanghai and meet with senior Chinese officials.
Pipeline company Equitrans Midstream also spiked around 35% Tuesday because the debt ceiling agreement contains a surprising call to speed up the creation of a stalled natural gas pipeline called the Mountain Valley Pipeline. Equitrans is the lead developer of the pipeline project.
In commodities news, US oil prices dropped below $70 a barrel Tuesday on concerns about whether the debt ceiling deal will make it through Congress and on reports of tensions between Saudi Arabia and Russia ahead of a key OPEC+ meeting. Crude slumped 4.4% to close at $69.46 a barrel, the lowest settlement price in nearly four weeks.
Traders are also gearing up for the US jobs report for May, due out Friday. Investors will analyze the report for clues about whether the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates at its June meeting. The closely watched JOLTS report for April, which details job openings, is expected out on Wednesday.
As stocks settle after the trading day, levels might change slightly.
