US: Stocks falter ahead of key earnings and jobs data
WALL Street stocks ended lower on Thursday as investors awaited earnings reports from major tech companies after the closing bell, and official employment data the following morning.
The fall extended a pullback after Fitch downgraded the United States from its top-tier AAA credit rating, citing the country’s weakening governance and rising debt burden.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.2 per cent to 35,215.89, while the broad-based S&P 500 fell 0.3 per cent to 4,501.85.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index dipped 0.1 per cent to 13,959.72.
This marked a continuation of the week’s trends, said Karl Haeling of LBBW.
The credit downgrade by Fitch – which attracted strong disagreement from the White House and Treasury earlier this week – is not expected to have a lasting impact, said Haeling.
GET BT IN YOUR INBOX DAILY
Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox.
But he added that it drew attention to the US budget deficit, which appears to be bigger than expected, while stronger-than-anticipated economic data “makes people nervous” given their potential bearing on interest rate decisions.
“A lot of economic data confirmed how resilient the US economy remains,” said Edward Moya of Oanda in a note.
With services sector activity still expanding, though at a slower rate, and jobless claims still low, the Federal Reserve might need to deliver further rate increases, he said.
Among individual firms, chip company Qualcomm’s shares ended 8.2 per cent lower after it forecast weaker profits than anticipated in the upcoming quarter.
Toymaker Hasbro shares edged up 1.1 per cent as it announced the sale of its eOne film and television business to Lionsgate for around US$500 million. AFP
BT is now on Telegram!
For daily updates on weekdays and specially selected content for the weekend. Subscribe to t.me/BizTimes
Capital Markets & Currencies
Asia: Traders bide their time ahead of key US inflation data
Fraud concerns raise red flags for India’s booming tiny IPOs
IMF endorses Japan’s commitment to flexible yen
Singapore stocks open muted on Tuesday; STI up 0.01%
Stocks to watch: ThaiBev, OCBC, Bumitama Agri, Sasseur Reit, SBS Transit, LHN
GameStop soars as flag bearer ‘Roaring Kitty’ resurfaces, sparks meme stock rally