S&P 500, Nasdaq slip as investors digest earnings, data
Fed officials signal pause on rate cuts
Initial jobless claims unchanged from prior week
Indexes: Dow up 0.03%, S&P down 0.19%, Nasdaq 0.38%
Updated at 2:20 p.m. ET/ 1830 GMT
By Chuck Mikolajczak
NEW YORK, April 18 (Reuters) -U.S. stocks dipped on Thursday, as investors waded through the latest batch of corporate earnings, while economic data and comments from Federal Reserve officials indicated the central bank was unlikely to cut interest rates in the near future.
Economic data showed that the labor market remained resilient, as weekly initial unemployment claims were unchanged from the prior week at 212,000 while a gauge of manufacturing in the mid-Atlantic region rose to a two-year high.
The solid labor market, recent reading showing sticky inflation, and comments from Fed officials including Chair Jerome Powell have led markets to back off expectations the central bank would cut interest rates by at least 25 basis points (bps) at its June meeting.
"You got the unemployment numbers today and they're not showing that the labor market is, anywhere near going from being as tight as it is, there's no loosening the labor market that you can see," said Tom Hainlin, senior investment strategist at U.S. Bank Wealth Management in Minneapolis.
"Economic data just says that the economy is still in a good place and the reason for the Fed keeping rates high is positive growth, so you're getting this whipsaw in terms of what do you want to own."
The Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI rose 5.94 points, or 0.02%, to 37,758.56, the S&P 500 .SPX lost 9.45 points, or 0.19%, to 5,012.82 and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC lost 59.14 points, or 0.38%, to 15,624.23.
The S&P 500 is on track for its fifth straight session of declines, as equities have struggled recently following a five-month rally that started in November in part due to expectations the Fed was likely to cut interest rates in the first half of the year.
Comments on Thursday from Fed officials reiterated the lack of urgency to cut rates, as New York Federal Reserve President John Williams cited the robust economy while Atlanta Federal Reserve President Raphael Bostic he is "comfortable being patient" as inflation is returning to the Fed's 2% target more slowly than expected.
Market expectations for a rate cut of at least 25 bps in June have shrunk to 15.2%, according to CME's FedWatch Tool, with July standing at 41.5%. down from 48.4% a week ago.
On the plus side, stock Meta Platforms META.O rose 2.04% as the biggest boost to the S&P 500 after Bernstein raised its price target to $590 from $535.
Earnings season continued to pick up steam with Genuine Parts GPC.N jumping 11.75% as the top percentage gainer on the S&P 500, after the automotive parts distributor raised its 2024 profit forecast.
Las Vegas Sands LVS.N lost 8.96% despite beating quarterly expectations, as multiple brokerages cut their price target on the stock, citing weakness in its Macau operations.
Equifax EFX.N tumbled 9.12% as the worst performing S&P 500 stock after the credit ratings firm forecast its second-quarter revenue below estimates.
Declining issues outnumbered advancing ones by a 1.1-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and by a 1.11-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
The NYSE recorded 27 new highs and 80 new lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 21 new highs and 212 new lows.
US unemployment claims https://reut.rs/3JtnV6Y
Reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak; Editing by Aurora Ellis
Actifs liés
Dernières actualités
Avertissement : Les entités de XM Group proposent à notre plateforme de trading en ligne un service d'exécution uniquement, autorisant une personne à consulter et/ou à utiliser le contenu disponible sur ou via le site internet, qui n'a pas pour but de modifier ou d'élargir cette situation. De tels accès et utilisation sont toujours soumis aux : (i) Conditions générales ; (ii) Avertissements sur les risques et (iii) Avertissement complet. Un tel contenu n'est par conséquent fourni que pour information générale. En particulier, sachez que les contenus de notre plateforme de trading en ligne ne sont ni une sollicitation ni une offre de participation à toute transaction sur les marchés financiers. Le trading sur les marchés financiers implique un niveau significatif de risques pour votre capital.
Tout le matériel publié dans notre Centre de trading en ligne est destiné à des fins de formation / d'information uniquement et ne contient pas – et ne doit pas être considéré comme contenant – des conseils et recommandations en matière de finance, de fiscalité des investissements ou de trading, ou un enregistrement de nos prix de trading ou une offre, une sollicitation, une transaction à propos de tout instrument financier ou bien des promotions financières non sollicitées à votre égard.
Tout contenu tiers, de même que le contenu préparé par XM, tels que les opinions, actualités, études, analyses, prix, autres informations ou liens vers des sites tiers contenus sur ce site internet sont fournis "tels quels", comme commentaires généraux sur le marché et ne constituent pas des conseils en investissement. Dans la mesure où tout contenu est considéré comme de la recherche en investissement, vous devez noter et accepter que le contenu n'a pas été conçu ni préparé conformément aux exigences légales visant à promouvoir l'indépendance de la recherche en investissement et, en tant que tel, il serait considéré comme une communication marketing selon les lois et réglementations applicables. Veuillez vous assurer que vous avez lu et compris notre Avis sur la recherche en investissement non indépendante et notre avertissement sur les risques concernant les informations susdites, qui peuvent consultés ici.
