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By Lauren Young, Digital Special Projects Editor

US stocks tend to move in sync, but that is not the case in 2023. 

A key gauge of herd behavior is S&P 500 correlation – it measures how closely daily returns of the index constituents align over a month. And that correlation slipped to 0.22 at the end of June, close to the lowest since November 2021, according to data from S&P Dow Jones Indices. 

Translation: It means that many stocks are moving in different directions. 

Tech stocks like Apple (AAPL.O) and Nvidia (NVDA.O) are soaring while interest rate-sensitive areas like real estate and financials are lagging.

For the latest on stocks, check out our Markets news sections.

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

Have you checked your investment account statements lately?

As we pass the halfway mark of 2023, the S&P 500 is up more than 14% for the year, a rebound that surprised many analysts after equities’ brutal 2022 decline.

If history is a guide, stocks’ strong start may give them a boost in the second half. Since 1945, the S&P 500 went on to rise an average of 8% in the second half of the year when it rose at least 10% in the first six months, according to Sam Stovall, chief investment strategist at CFRA.

Here are six key questions investors are posing as they assess the market’s prospects for the rest of the year.

U.S. financials ‘not out of the woods yet’: After the interest-rate turmoil that shook some American banks in the spring, the financial sector still is a tricky place for investors, especially as experts predict future rate hikes.

A sign calling for student loan debt relief is seen in front of the Supreme Court. REUTERS/Nathan Howard/

The US Supreme Court’s decision to strike down President Joe Biden’s student debt relief blocks a plan to cancel $430 billion in student loan debt – a move that had been intended to benefit up to 43 million Americans and fulfill a campaign promise.

Under the plan, the US government said it would forgive up to $10,000 in federal student debt for Americans making under $125,000 who obtained loans to pay for college and other post-secondary education and $20,000 for recipients of Pell grants to students from lower-income families.

So what happens for borrowers next? While the pandemic pause on student loan payments will end soon, a new system for calculating your repayments may lower monthly bills. Here’s what will happen to your student loans now via the New York Times.

A US federal judge has restricted some agencies and officials from communicating with social media companies to moderate their content. The Biden administration are appealing. Migrants say they are stuck in northern Mexico because of new US border rules. Plus, religious schools in England wary of state intrusion in education.

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