| |
Financial Markets 03/21 16:03
Stocks on Wall Street shook off a weak start and closed slightly higher
Friday, snapping a four-week losing streak.
The S&P 500 edged up 0.1%. The index finished with a 0.5% gain for the week.
It's still down 4.8% so far this month.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average eked out a 0.1% gain, while the Nasdaq
composite rose 0.5%.
Technology stocks, which had been the heaviest weights on the market in the
early going, bounced back to offset a big share of the declines elsewhere in
the S&P 500. The sector has been at the center of much of the market's recent
sell-off in a reversal from their market-driving gains throughout the previous
year. The stocks are among the most valuable on Wall Street and have outsized
impacts on the whether the market gains or loses ground.
Apple rose about 2% and Microsoft added 1.1%. Another Big Tech stock,
Nvidia, fell 0.7%, while Micron Technology slid 8% for the biggest decline
among S&P 500 stocks.
Stocks have been losing ground for weeks over uncertainty about the
direction of the U.S. economy. A trade war between the U.S. and its key trading
partners threatens to worsen inflation and hurt both consumers and businesses.
Inflation remains stubbornly above the Federal Reserve's goal of 2% and tariffs
could hurt the central bank's efforts to ease the rate of inflation.
President Donald Trump has set an April 2 deadline to impose more tariffs on
trading partners. It follows a series of other deadlines that have been set for
tariffs only to be postponed, sometimes at the last minute.
"Investors are confused, but there's a lot less panic infusing the market,"
said Mark Hackett, chief market strategist at Nationwide.
Businesses have been warning investors about tariffs, inflation and growing
uncertainty about the impact to costs.
Nike slumped 5.5% after it forecast a steep decline in revenue in the
current quarter, blaming geopolitical dynamics, new tariffs by the Trump
administration and a less confident consumer.
FedEx tumbled 6.4% after the package delivery company said it expects
revenue to be flat to slightly down year-over-year and lowered its per-share
profit guidance.
Homebuilder Lennar fell 4% after giving investors a weaker-than-expected
forecast for new orders and average sales prices for the current quarter. It
said high interest rates, inflation, and waning consumer confidence are
weighing on an already tough housing market.
High interest rates have been a key issue for the housing market. The
Federal Reserve held its benchmark interest rate steady at its most recent
meeting this week as it assesses the potential impact from tariffs and other
U.S. policy shifts.
The Fed cut interest rates through the end of last year amid consistently
easing inflation rates, but has been holding steady so far in 2025. Lower rates
can bolster the economy, but they can also push inflation higher.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell has acknowledged that the economy remains solid, but
stressed that uncertainty is making forecasting difficult.
"With Fed Chair Powell acknowledging that the effect of tariffs on consumer
confidence, economic growth and inflation remain unknown, we might be in this
below-water holding pattern until after April 2," said Sam Stovall, chief
investment strategist at CFRA.
A recent batch of economic reports on home sales, industrial production and
unemployment reinforced the view that the economy is holding strong. But other
reports on consumer sentiment and retail sales have revealed rising caution
from consumers.
"We're in really pessimistic territory," Hackett said. "When everybody is
pessimistic, that's when a tiny bit of optimism can move markets pretty
strongly."
In the bond market, Treasury yields mostly held steady. The yield on the
10-year Treasury rose to 4.25% from 4.23% late Thursday.
Airlines were under pressure. A fire knocked out power at London's Heathrow
Airport, forcing it to shut down and disrupting global travel for hundreds of
thousands of passengers. Ryanair Holdings fell 1.5%.
Shares in several U.S.-based airlines were mixed. American Airlines rose
1.2%, United Airlines added 1.1% and Delta Air Lines fell 0.4%.
Troubled airplane maker Boeing surged 3.1% after Trump said Boeing will
build the Air Force's future fighter jet. The company has been facing scrutiny
over safety issues for years.
Boeing's rival in the defense sector, Lockheed Martin, slumped 5.8%.
All told, the S&P 500 rose 4.67 points to 5,667.56. The Dow gained 32.03
points to 41,985.35, and the Nasdaq rose 92.43 points to 17,784.05.
Markets in Europe fell. Britain's FTSE 100 shed 0.6% after the Bank of
England held its main interest rate steady a day earlier.
Germany's DAX slipped 0.5%. German lawmakers voted for a budget that will
boost defense and infrastructure spending.
___
Jiang Junzhe and Matt Ott contributed to this report.
---------
itemid:4c7b6fd3ccd80ba81d76e813c278f803
|
|
