Shares of technology companies rose as traders continued a rotation back into the most beaten-down 2022 sector.
Apple shares rose after it unveiled a new MacBook Pro, using its proprietary M2 Pro computer chips. Shares of the gadget and computer maker are now up almost 9% for the year to date.
National Instruments rallied after electronics maker Emerson Electric offered roughly $7 billion to buy the Austin, Texas maker of measurement devices and software, an offer it said it raised from an earlier bid.
Roblox rose after the maker of metaverse-style gaming environments reported an increase in daily active users for December, rebounding after a slowdown in growth last year, sending shares higher.
Unity Software is laying off more than 200 employees, joining a wave of tech companies such as Facebook owner Meta laying off workers because of slowing demand.
Chinese videogame publisher NetEase refused Activision Blizzard's offer to extend a licensing partnership, which had seen elements of the "World of Warcraft" game used in a NetEase product.
Fears about access to the world's second largest videogaming market weighed on shares of Activision.
Meme-stock investor Ryan Cohen has amassed a stake in Chinese online bazaar Alibaba Group Holdings and is now actively pushing the Chinese e-commerce giant to expand its share buyback program.
Microsoft said it's allowing more customers access to the software behind popular artificial-intelligence tools made by OpenAI, including the online phenomenon ChatGPT.
Write to Rob Curran at rob.curran@dowjones.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
01-17-23 1703ET
