Apple Nears $2 Trillion Club Membership Despite S&P 500 Decline

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy New York=Correspondent Baek Jong-min] Despite positive U.S. unemployment data, concerns over delays in stimulus package agreements and caution over excessive rises led to a mixed close. Apple is on the verge of surpassing a $2 trillion market capitalization.

On the 13th (local time), the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 80.12 points (0.29%) to close at 27,896.72, and the S&P 500 index dropped 6.92 points (0.2%) to close at 3,373.43. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq index rose 30.27 points (0.27%) to close at 11,042.50.

The market showed strength early in the session due to a surprising drop in weekly initial jobless claims but turned mixed as time passed.

The U.S. Department of Labor announced that last week's initial jobless claims decreased by 228,000 from the previous week to 963,000. This is the first time since the unemployment crisis in March that new unemployment claims have fallen below one million. The figure was lower than the 1.1 million expected by experts surveyed by Dow Jones.

Inflation rates reported the day before also showed better-than-expected results, indicating ongoing economic recovery.

However, the market's strength relative to the pace of economic recovery appears to be a burden on investors.

Although the S&P 500 index approached the all-time high recorded in February, it failed to break the previous peak again. Despite Apple rising about 1.8%, the S&P 500 closed lower. Apple’s announcement of preparing a new subscription service acted as a positive factor, bringing its market capitalization close to $2 trillion.

September delivery West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil closed down 1% ($0.43) at $42.24 per barrel compared to the previous day. December delivery gold closed up 1.1% ($21.40) at $1,970.40 per ounce.