NEW YORK, June 22 (Xinhua) — U.S. stocks ended mixed on Thursday as investors weighed Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s testimony and the latest developments from global central banks.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 4.81 points, or 0.01 percent, to 33,946.71. The S&P 500 added 16.20 points, or 0.37 percent, to 4,381.89. The Nasdaq Composite Index increased by 128.41 points, or 0.95 percent, to 13,630.61.

Six of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors ended in red, with real estate and energy leading the laggards by losing 1.44 percent and 1.30 percent, respectively. Meanwhile, consumer discretionary and communication services led the gainers by rising 1.53 percent and 1.15 percent, respectively.

S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite ended a three-day losing streak on Thursday, as investors snapped up some tech-related stocks that got dragged this week, helping some major tech stocks keep in the green.

Investors are paying close attention to Powell’s testimony before Congress this week. Powell said returning inflation to 2 percent target is crucial to support the long-term health of the U.S. economy, adding that more rate hikes might be needed this year.

Many Fed officials expect that “it will be appropriate to raise rates again this year, and perhaps twice,” although the timing of any hikes will be data-dependent, Powell told the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs on Thursday, one day after his testimony before the House Financial Services Committee.

Hawks and doves entered the battlefield at the Fed meeting in June, wrangling over the extent to which further rate hikes might be needed and how forcefully to convey that, said Ellen Zentner, chief U.S. economist with Morgan Stanley. “The Fed could raise rates later this year, although when thinking about the very next meeting we think the bar to hike in July is much higher than market pricing implies.”

Meanwhile, there is a debate among investors about whether the current environment is a bull market or not, with some realizing that not just the Fed, but global central banks are not done with hiking interest rates. The Bank of England raised rates by 50 basis points, a larger-than-expected move, which followed similar moves from Switzerland and Norway on Thursday.

Investors are also digesting a batch of fresh economic data released on Thursday.

U.S. Initial jobless claims held at 264,000 in the week ending June 17, in line with the previous week’s revision, still the highest level since late 2021, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.

U.S. existing home sales rose 0.2 percent last month from April to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.3 million units, which retreated 20.4 percent from a year ago, according to data released by the National Association of Realtors on Thursday.