So far, 2013 has shown frequent movement in technology stocks – and not always in positive directions. Last week was little different, as the trading week began with a sharp decline in Apple shares, even while other tech companies like HP saw surprisingly strong results.
Among US stocks, tech stock receives a lot of attention these days, due in large part to high value and high growth potential in the increasingly globalized world. Fewer businesses receive more attention than Apple, poised at the head of Nasdaq, but January has held nothing but bad news for the tech giant. News that the company was cutting orders for the iPhone 5 led to a 3.6% loss for company shares. Since Apple represents around 10% of Nasdaq’s Composite Index, this also meant losses for Nasdaq.
However, other tech companies did their best to break the trend. Hewlett-Packard leapfrogged over Lenovo to become the top producer of personal computers and rose 4.9 percent as a result, giving the Dow a big boost.
Dell also made a bid for investor attention with the breaking news that the company could be going private later this year, a move that would potentially raise the value of shares in the months leading up to the transition. Dell stock rose by 16% in anticipation and helped U.S. stocks recover from the poor Apple outlook.
Even Research In Motion took part in the good news, with announcements of multiple Blackberry releases through the end of the year and positive backlash from rival Apple’s poor developments that pushed the handset tech company up 9.7%.
All in all, it is shaping up to be a dramatic first quarter for tech trading. Businesses are accepting the ever-growing integration of tech into other sectors, leading to greater investor attention – and wariness – around indexes like Nasdaq.
Mobile businesses and apps are expected to boom throughout 2013, while CES has spawned dozens of hopeful plans for investment in new products and technology, such as 4K TVs and more powerful tablets. While many S&P followers are waiting anxiously for banking news, the tech market is already seeing plenty of action, and the year is promising much more.
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