NYSE Dow Jones finished today at:

[eskys]

To date, not a single stock has traded in my watchlist, and BBOZ is up. ?SPI wrong here?

 

[bigdog]

Stock market today: Nvidia and other tech stocks win back some of Monday's sharp losses

Rebounding tech stocks drove U.S. indexes higher a day after they tumbled on doubts about whether the artificial-intelligence frenzy really needs all the dollars being poured into it.

apnews.com

Nvidia and other tech stocks win back some of Monday’s sharp losses​

By STAN CHOE
Updated 8:20 AM GMT+11, January 29, 2025

NEW YORK (AP) — Rebounding tech stocks drove U.S. indexes higher Tuesday, a day after they tumbled on doubts about whether the artificial-intelligence frenzy really needs all the dollars being poured into it.

The S&P 500 climbed 0.9% to claw back more than half of its earlier drop. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 136 points, or 0.3%, and the Nasdaq composite rallied 2% after sliding 3.1 % the day before.

The spotlight remained on Nvidia, whose chips are powering much of the move into AI and whose stock has become a symbol of the surrounding frenzy. It rose 8.8% after plunging nearly 17% the day before, which was its worst drop since the 2020 COVID crash.

Other AI-related companies also held steadier, including chip company Broadcom, which rose 2.6%. Constellation Energy picked up 1.4% after plummeting nearly 21% on Monday. It had earlier rallied on expectations it will help supply the electricity that vast AI data centers would gobble up.

Such revenues are threatened after DeepSeek, a Chinese company, said it was able to develop a large language model that can perform as well as big U.S. rivals but at a fraction of the cost. That raises questions about whether all the spending expected for AI chips and electricity will need to happen.

AI-related stocks have been Wall Street’s biggest stars in recent years, soaring on expectations that big spending will only continue to grow. The gains, though, also created criticism that the stock prices had simply gone too high, too fast.

It’s still uncertain how much DeepSeek’s development will upend the AI industry. While it could mean less growth in spending than expected for data centers, electricity and chips, it could also boost other areas.

“If AI becomes less expensive to use, we think businesses will adopt it more quickly, making a greater investment in AI software,” according to James Egelhof, chief U.S. economist at BNP Paribas. “We think this acceleration in adoption could mean a rise in software investment that offsets – or even dwarfs – any deceleration in spending on data center structures, hardware and related investment.”

Outside of AI-related industries, stocks held up fairly well on Monday, and they were mixed Tuesday following a set of mixed profit reports.

Royal Caribbean steamed 12% higher after the cruise operator topped analysts’ profit expectations for the end of 2024. It benefited from stronger-than-expected demand from customers booking trips closer to the time of departure. The company also gave a profit forecast for the first three months of 2025 that topped analysts’ expectations.

JetBlue Airways, meanwhile, lost a quarter of its value, 25.7%, despite reporting a milder loss for the latest quarter than analysts expected. The company expects its costs outside of fuel to rise more quickly at the start of 2025 than a key underlying measure of its revenue.

Later this week will come profit reports from some of Wall Street’s most influential companies, including Apple, Meta Platforms, Microsoft and Tesla.

All told, the S&P 500 rose 55.42 points to 6,067.70. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 136.77 to 44,850.35, and the Nasdaq composite rallied 391.75 to 19,733.59.

In the bond market, which had been driving much of Wall Street’s action before Monday’s upheaval, Treasury yields held relatively steady.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury remained at 4.53%, where it was late Monday. It’s been climbing in recent months as traders pared back expectations for how many cuts the Federal Reserve will deliver to short-term interest rates this year. The U.S. economy remains solid, and worries are high that tariffs and other policies potentially coming from President Donald Trump could put upward pressure on inflation.

A report showing confidence among U.S. consumers wasn’t as strong as economists expected made relatively small waves in the bond market. The more anticipated event will come on Wednesday, when the Federal Reserve will announce its latest decision on interest rates.

The widespread expectation is that it will leave the federal funds rate alone. If that proves true, it would be the first meeting where the Fed did not cut rates to give the economy a boost since it began doing so in September.

In stock markets abroad, indexes were mixed across Europe and Asia.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 lost 1.4% as SoftBank Group Corp. stock extended its losses, sinking 5.2%.

Fuji Media Holdings, rocked by a sex scandal, rose 3% after a marathon news conference by its top executives that lasted more than 10 hours, in which two of them resigned to take responsibility for the scandal. Fuji’s stock price has zigzagged in recent months amid Japanese magazine reports about “a problem” involving an anchorwoman and a Japanese male star. He has subsequently announced his retirement.

ASX 200 expected to Rise​

Australian share market set to rise ahead of quarterly inflation data after a strong night of trade on Wall Street.

According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the day 36 points or 0.4% higher this morning.

Rebounding tech stocks drove U.S. indexes higher Tuesday, a day after they tumbled on doubts about whether the artificial-intelligence frenzy really needs all the dollars being poured into it.

The S&P 500 climbed 0.9% to claw back more than half of its earlier drop. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 136 points, or 0.3%, and the Nasdaq composite rallied 2% after sliding 3.1 % the day before.

All told, the S&P 500 rose 55.42 points to 6,067.70. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 136.77 to 44,850.35, and the Nasdaq composite rallied 391.75 to 19,733.59.


WHAT IS THE BEST WEBSITE TO GET TODAY'S ASX 200 FUTURES NUMBER?

WESTPAC reporting +36 points
https://www.ig.com/au/indices/markets-indices/australia-200 REPORTING +15 POINTS
MARKET SNAPSHOT BELOW IS 0.4%
MARKET WATCH BELOW IS +32 POINTS, BUT IS BEFORE WALL STREET HAS CLOSED

 

[bigdog]

Stock market today: Wall Street slips after the Federal Reserve keeps interest rates steady

U.S. stocks slipped after the Federal Reserve held its main interest rate steady and broke a run of cuts that began in September. The S&P 500 fell 0.5% Wednesday.

apnews.com

Wall Street slips after the Federal Reserve keeps interest rates steady​

By STAN CHOE
Updated 8:17 AM GMT+11, January 30, 2025

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stock indexes slipped Wednesday after the Federal Reserve opted not to cut interest rates for the first time since it began trying to help the economy through easier rates in September.

The S&P 500 fell 0.5% following the Fed’s widely expected decision. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 137 points, or 0.3%, and the Nasdaq composite fell 0.5%.

The reaction was also relatively muted in the bond market following the Fed’s decision, which could hint at rates staying on hold for a while following their swift drop at the end of 2024. Lower rates would help the economy by making it cheaper for U.S. households and companies to borrow, but the downside is they could also give inflation more fuel.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell said after the decision that the central bank could cut rates if inflation were to slow further or if the job market suddenly weakened. But “right now, we don’t see that, and we see things as in a really good place for policy and for the economy, and so we feel like we don’t need to be in a hurry to make any adjustments.”

While Wall Street would almost always prefer lower interest rates, “we would continue to focus on why the Fed won’t cut anytime soon, specifically a strong economy and labor, which bodes well for solid corporate earnings growth,” said Sameer Samana, senior global market strategist at Wells Fargo Investment Institute.

Wednesday’s relatively calm movements for financial markets offered some respite following two days of disruption driven by doubts about the artificial-intelligence boom.

A Chinese upstart, DeepSeek, has raised nearly existential questions for some of the AI industry after saying it developed a large-language model that can compete with the world’s best without having to use top-flight chips.

That casts doubt about whether AI development broadly will require as much spending on chips, vast data centers and electricity as Wall Street and Big Tech had been assuming. That in turn has caused huge swings for stocks across the industry, particularly for Nvidia.

The company, whose stock has almost become a symbol of the AI bonanza, fell 4% Wednesday after plunging nearly 17% Monday and then jumping nearly 9% Tuesday. It was the single heaviest weight dragging the S&P 500 lower, by far.

Big gains for Nvidia and other Big Tech companies had been instrumental in the S&P 500’s rallying to back-to-back yearly gains of more than 20% for the first time since before the millennium. Nvidia alone accounted for more than a fifth of all of the S&P 500’s total return last year.

Elsewhere on Wall Street, Starbucks rose 8.1% after delivering a better profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. CEO Brian Niccol said the chain is planning to cut its food and beverage offerings by 30% over the course of this year to simplify operations and speed service, part of its efforts to turn the company around.

T-Mobile US rallied 6.3% after topping Wall Street’s expectations for both profit and revenue in the last three months of 2024. It also said it expects to add between a net 5.5 million and 6 million in postpaid customers this year.

Brinker International jumped 16.3% after the company behind Chili’s restaurants delivered better results than expected. CEO Kevin Hochman said Chili’s attracted new customers and that its return customers were coming more frequently.

Railroad operator Norfolk Southern rose 1.8% after beating Wall Street’s profit forecasts. There is also growing optimism that a Republican-controlled Congress could ease restrictions on the industry.

Frontier Group Holdings climbed 5.3% after announcing it would try for a second time to merge with Spirit Airlines, which sought bankruptcy protection late last year. Frontier said the proposed deal would include newly issued Frontier debt and common stock.

Trump Media & Technology Group rose after announcing it would be getting into the financial services business via a partnership with Charles Schwab. TMTG said more details would be released later this year, and what had been a double-digit gain for the notoriously volatile stock shrank to an increase of 6.8%.

On the losing end of Wall Street was Danaher, which fell 9.7% after the life sciences, biotechnology and diagnostics company reported results for the latest quarter that just missed analysts’ expectations.

All told, the S&P 500 fell 28.39 points to 6,039.31. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 136.83 to 44,713.52, and the Nasdaq composite sank 101.26 to 19,632.32.

In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury held at 4.53%, where it was late Tuesday.

In stock markets abroad, indexes were mixed in Europe. ASML’s stock jumped 5.6% in Amsterdam after announcing strong revenue on demand for its advanced chipmaking tools.

In Asia, where many markets were closed for holidays, Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 1%

ASX 200 expected to fall​

The Australian share market looks set to fall on Thursday following a poor night of trade on Wall Street.

According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the day 5 points lower this morning.

U.S. stock indexes slipped Wednesday after the Federal Reserve opted not to cut interest rates for the first time since it began trying to help the economy through easier rates in September.

The S&P 500 fell 0.5% following the Fed’s widely expected decision. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 137 points, or 0.3%, and the Nasdaq composite fell 0.5%.

All told, the S&P 500 fell 28.39 points to 6,039.31. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 136.83 to 44,713.52, and the Nasdaq composite sank 101.26 to 19,632.32.

 

[bigdog]

Stock market today: Tesla, IBM and Meta lead most of Wall Street higher

Tesla, IBM and Meta Platforms helped lead most U.S. stocks higher following a rush of profit reports from some of the country’s most influential companies.

apnews.com

Tesla, IBM and Meta lead most of Wall Street higher​

By STAN CHOE
Updated 8:27 AM GMT+11, January 31, 2025

NEW YORK (AP) — Tesla, IBM and Meta Platforms helped lead most U.S. stocks higher on Thursday following a rush of profit reports from some of the country’s most influential companies.

The S&P 500 rose 0.5%, as four out of every five stocks in the index climbed. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 168 points, or 0.4%, and the Nasdaq composite gained 0.3%.

Meta Platforms helped push indexes higher after rising 1.6%. The company behind Facebook and Instagram delivered a better profit for the end of 2024 than analysts expected. Perhaps just as importantly for the market, it also talked up its artificial-intelligence efforts and said it will continue to invest in the space.

That calmed some of the worries created by a Chinese upstart, DeepSeek, when it said it developed a large language model capable of competing with the world’s best, without having to use top-flight chips. That raised questions about whether all the investment expected for AI chips, data centers and electricity is really needed and sent a shock through markets at the start of the week.

The AI boom has been a primary reason for the U.S. stock market’s run to repeated records in recent years, and the threat has hit stocks like Nvidia particularly hard. The chip company that’s become the symbol of the AI frenzy spent most of Thursday lower, but it ended with a gain of 1% and was one of the strongest forces lifting the S&P 500.

Keeping indexes in check was Microsoft, which fell 6.2%. The Redmond, Washington-based software giant topped analysts’ expectations for profit in the latest quarter, but the focus was instead on the slower-than-expected growth in its cloud computing business, which is a centerpiece of its AI efforts.

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella also continued to talk up AI following DeepSeek’s disruption.

“DeepSeek had some real innovations,” he said, and it is good to have efficiency gains and lower prices in AI development because it “means people can consume more and there’ll be more apps written.”

The pressure is on companies to keep delivering stronger profits. That would help them offset the downward force their stock prices have felt from climbing yields in the bond market recently. When bonds are paying more in interest, investors aren’t as willing to pay high prices for stocks.

Treasury yields have been climbing amid fears inflation may remain stubbornly above the Federal Reserve’s 2% target. A solid U.S. economy and worries about tariffs and other policies potentially coming from President Donald Trump have been some of the reasons behind the rise.

Treasury yields held relatively steady Thursday after a report indicated the U.S. economy grew at a solid pace at the end of 2024, but slightly slower than economists expected. The 10-year Treasury yield edged down to 4.52% from 4.53% late Wednesday.

The report showed a “Goldilocks” economy at the turn of the year, one that was neither too hot nor too cold, according to Gregory Daco, chief economist at EY. But he warned many uncertainties from Washington could change things, including what it does with income tax rates, tariffs and immigration.

Yields felt some downward pressure after the European Central Bank cut its main interest rate in hopes of boosting the region’s stagnant economy.

In Washington, the Federal Reserve had also been cutting its main rate since September to help the U.S. economy, but it opted to hold steady on Wednesday. Fed Chair Jerome Powell said it likely needs to see more evidence of a slowdown either in inflation or in the U.S. job market to lower rates further.

On Wall Street, Tesla drove 2.9% higher even though Elon Musk’s electric-vehicle company reported a weaker profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. Musk asserted Tesla will offer unsupervised “full self-driving” technology to its customers as a paid service starting in Austin in June.

IBM rallied 13% after beating analysts’ expectations for profit. CEO Arvind Krishna pointed to its growing book of generative AI business and said IBM expects its overall revenue to grow at least 5% this year.

On the losing end of Wall Street was UPS, which fell 14.1% despite topping analysts’ expectations for profit. The package delivery company said its largest customer, Amazon, would lower its volume by more than 50% by the second half of 2026.

American Airlines fell 2.5% in its first trading following a crash involving an American Eagle flight and an Army helicopter just outside Washington. The cause of Wednesday night’s midair collision is under investigation.

All told, the S&P 500 gained 31.86 points to 6,071.17. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 168.61 to 44,882.13, and the Nasdaq composite added 49.43 to 19,681.75.

In stock markets abroad, indexes rose across much of Europe after Japan’s Nikkei 225 added 0.3%. Several Asian remained closed for the Lunar New Year holiday.

ASX 200 expected to rise again​

The Australian share market looks set to push higher again on Friday following a positive night of trade in the United States.

According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open 36 points or 0.4% higher this morning.

Tesla, IBM and Meta Platforms helped lead most U.S. stocks higher on Thursday following a rush of profit reports from some of the country’s most influential companies.

The S&P 500 rose 0.5%, as four out of every five stocks in the index climbed. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 168 points, or 0.4%, and the Nasdaq composite gained 0.3%.

All told, the S&P 500 gained 31.86 points to 6,071.17. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 168.61 to 44,882.13, and the Nasdaq composite added 49.43 to 19,681.75.

 

[bigdog]

Stock market today: Wall Street surrenders gains after White House confirms Trump tariff move

Stocks surrendered early gains and closed lower after the White House said President Donald Trump would impose promised tariffs on some key U.S. trading partners.

apnews.com

Wall Street surrenders gains after White House confirms Trump tariff move​

By STAN CHOE and DAMIAN J. TROISE
Updated 9:22 AM GMT+11, February 1, 2025

Stocks on Wall Street surrendered early gains and closed broadly lower Friday after the White House said President Donald Trump would impose promised tariffs on key U.S. trading partners.

The S&P 500 fell 0.5% and the Nasdaq composite dropped 0.3%. The indexes, which had posted solid gains in morning trading, posted their first weekly loss in three weeks.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.8%.

Trump will put in place 25% tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico and 10% tariffs on goods from China effective Saturday. The White House provided no word on whether there would be any exemptions to the measures that could result in swift price increases to U.S. consumers.

The selling was broad, with about 75% of the stocks in the S&P 500 closing lower. Technology and energy companies accounted for a large share of the decline.

“If Trump says it’s something that could happen by tomorrow that doesn’t leave a lot of room to move,” said Sam Stovall, chief investment strategist at CFRA. “There’s just so much uncertainty associated with elevating tariffs on our three major trading partners.”

The earlier gains on Wall Street had helped shave losses from the start of the week over worries that the artificial-intelligence boom may not require as much investment as thought.

Apple reversed course from market leading gains to a loss of 0.7%. The company had reported stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. Wall Street’s most valuable company, and thus the most influential on the S&P 500 and other indexes, said sales of iPhones dipped. But revenue for its services businesses, such as AppleCare and its app store, rose to a record.

KLA, a supplier to the electronics industry initially rose after reporting profit and revenue that topped analysts’ expectations, but then closed down 0.6%. The company, which credited its results on expanding artificial-intelligence and high-performance computing investments, fell 6.3% on Monday. That’s when tech stocks around the world tumbled, after a Chinese upstart, DeepSeek, said it developed a large language model capable of competing with the world’s best, without having to use top-flight chips.

The disruption raised questions about whether all the investment expected for AI chips, data centers and electricity is really needed.

Apple leads stocks higher. More from AP’s Damian Troise.

Shares of Nvidia, considered the poster child for the AI frenzy, fell 3.7%. They dropped 15.8% for the week. Its CEO, Jensen Huang, was expected to meet with Trump Friday in Washington.

Worries that tariffs could end up driving inflation higher helped push long-term bond yields higher, including the 10-year Treasury, which rose to 4.54% from 4.52% late Thursday.

“It’s not the safe haven that it normally is because these tariffs might result in higher inflation and the need for the Fed to remain on pause for longer or to reverse course and raise rates,” Stovall said.

Shorter-term U.S. government bond yields mostly fell.

Yields have been generally climbing since September as the U.S. economy has remained much more solid than economists expected. More recently, worries about tariffs and other possible Trump administration policies that could add upward pressure on inflation and the U.S. government’s debt have also sent yields higher.

The Federal Reserve left its benchmark interest rate unchanged as it closed out its most recent meeting Wednesday. The central bank is signaling a more cautious approach as it waits to see how policies under Trump will impact inflation and the broader economy. Higher tariffs and tax cuts could push inflation higher, while deregulation could possibly reduce it.

“Markets are on edge watching President Trump’s plans to raise tariffs and tighten immigration policies, since both are pressuring the Fed to keep interest rates elevated,” said Bill Adams, chief economist for Comerica Bank.

On Wall Street, Walgreens Boots Alliance dropped 10.3% after suspending its dividend and breaking a streak of quarterly payouts to its shareholders that stretches back more than 90 years.

Exxon Mobil ticked down 2.5% even though the energy giant posted a stronger fourth quarter profit than Wall Street had forecast. Exxon credited increased production in the U.S. Permian basin and in Guyana for the strong results, but its revenue came in lower than expected.

All told, the S&P 500 fell 30.64 points to 6,040.53. The Dow dropped 337.47 points to 44,544.66. The Nasdaq lost 54.31 points to close at 19,627.44.

In stock markets abroad, indexes ended mixed in Europe after also finishing mixed in Asia.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 index added 0.1% after a report showed that the country’s core inflation rate topped the central bank’s 2% target, paving the way for further hikes to interest rates.

The Kospi in South Korea fell 0.8% after trading resumed there following holidays. Markets remained closed in Hong Kong and Shanghai for the Lunar New Year.

 

[bigdog]

ASX 200 expected to sink​

The Australian share market looks set to sink on Monday following a poor night of trade on Wall Street on Friday.

According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the day 101 points or 1.2% lower.
Stocks on Wall Street surrendered early gains and closed broadly lower Friday after the White House said President Donald Trump would impose promised tariffs on key U.S. trading partners.

The S&P 500 fell 0.5% and the Nasdaq composite dropped 0.3%. The indexes, which had posted solid gains in morning trading, posted their first weekly loss in three weeks.

All told, the S&P 500 fell 30.64 points to 6,040.53. The Dow dropped 337.47 points to 44,544.66. The Nasdaq lost 54.31 points to close at 19,627.44.

 

[divs4ever]

yep 1+% lower say negative 5% in tiny pockets , would put some of my orders 'in the game '

but let's see how it all plays out

 

[bigdog]

Wall Street falls following Trump's tariffs, but not as badly as feared in the morning

Worries about President Trump’s tariffs are hurting U.S. stocks as financial markets worldwide drop on concerns about a potential trade war.

apnews.com

Wall Street falls following Trump’s tariffs, but not as badly as feared in the morning​

By STAN CHOE
Updated 9:08 AM GMT+11, February 4, 2025

NEW YORK (AP) — The threat of a punishing trade war sent Wall Street on a roller coaster Monday. After initially falling sharply on worries about President Donald Trump’s tariffs, U.S. stocks pared their losses after Mexico said it had negotiated a one-month reprieve.

The S&P 500 ended up falling 0.8% after Asian and European indexes logged worse drops. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 122 points, or 0.3%, and the Nasdaq composite sank 1.2%.

The U.S. stock market had been on track for a much worse loss at the start of trading on worries about how much pain U.S. companies would feel because of the tariffs. The S&P 500 was briefly down nearly 2%, and the Dow dropped as many as 665 points.

Some of the heaviest losses hit Big Tech and other companies that could be hurt most by higher interest rates that could result from the U.S. tariffs announced on imports from Canada, Mexico and China.

The fear hanging over Wall Street is that Trump’s tariffs could push up prices for groceries, electronics and all kinds of other bills for U.S. households, adding upward pressure on a U.S. inflation rate that’s largely been slowing since its peak three summers ago. Stubbornly high or accelerating inflation could keep the Federal Reserve from cutting interest rates, which it began doing in September to give the U.S. economy a boost. Profits for U.S. companies, meanwhile, could face downward pressure from slowing global trade.

But U.S. stocks pared their losses after Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said tariffs on her country’s goods are on hold for a month following a conversation with Trump. The Dow even turned briefly turned higher in the afternoon for a small gain. After the U.S. stock market closed for the day, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said a conversation he had with Trump also led to a 30-day pause.

Much of Wall Street had been hoping Trump’s talk of tariffs through the presidential campaign was just that, talk, and an opening point for negotiations with U.S. trading partners instead of a permanent policy. Monday’s swivels on Mexico and Canada leave open the question of whether Trump is using tariffs as merely a tool for negotiations.

But when traders came into Monday morning thinking tariffs were imminent, fear rose quickly about the potential for an escalating trade war that could damage economies worldwide, including the United States.

“Living in the Midwest, I might feel the trade war soonest and most,” said Brian Jacobsen, chief economist at Annex Wealth Management, because of how much crude oil flows over the northern U.S. border to make gasoline. “Our refiners can’t easily switch away from Canadian crude.”

Crude oil prices swung Monday amid the uncertainty. The price for a barrel of benchmark U.S. crude went from $72.53 on Friday to nearly $75 before the U.S. stock market opened Monday to briefly falling back toward $72.

Trump himself warned Americans they may feel “some pain” from the tariffs, which he said would be “worth the price” to make America great again. He also said Sunday night that import taxes will “definitely happen” with the European Union and possibly with the United Kingdom as well.

Some on Wall Street remain skeptical about how long a trade war may last, especially considering how much attention Trump pays to the stock market. An escalating trade war can send stocks skidding, as Monday morning quickly demonstrated, and “significant stock market volatility could lead to a change in approach,” said Solita Marcelli, chief investment officer, Americas, at UBS Global Wealth Management.

Constellation Brands, the company that sells Modelo and Corona beers in the United States, fell 3.5%. Best Buy, which sells electronics made around the world, lost 2.4%. Brown-Forman, the company behind Jack Daniel’s that sells alcohol in Canada, fell 3.3%.

All told, the S&P 500 fell 45.96 points to 5,994.57. The Dow dropped 122.75 points to 44,421.91, and the Nasdaq composite sank 235.49 to 19,391.96.

Instead of stocks and crypto, whose prices also fell in the tumult, investors moved instead into longer-term U.S. government bonds, which are seen as some of the safest possible investments. The resulting rally in their prices drove Treasury yields down.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury edged down to 4.53% from 4.55% late Friday after earlier dropping as low as 4.46%.

It’s a reprieve, at least temporarily, from a rise in longer-term Treasury yields that had shaken Wall Street in recent months. Yields had climbed in part on worries about the possibility of higher interest rates because of stubbornly high inflation.

Short-term Treasury yields rose Monday as expectations waned for cuts to rates from the Fed. The yield on the two-year Treasury rose to 4.25% from 4.21%

Higher yields put pressure on all kinds of investments, but they’re particularly burdensome on stocks seen as the most expensive.

That puts the spotlight on companies like Nvidia and other winners of the artificial-intelligence boom. Nvidia fell 2.8% and was one of the heaviest weights on the S&P 500.

Such AI superstars had already come under pressure last week, after a Chinese upstart said it had developed a large language model that could perform as well as big U.S. rivals, but without having to use the most expensive, top-flight chips.

Trump’s tariffs took center stage in a week where other events would typically take the spotlight, including a report on Friday showing how many workers U.S. employers hired last month. A slew of profit reports are also due this week from Alphabet, Amazon and other highly influential companies.

In stock markets abroad, indexes fell 1% in London, 1.2% in Paris and 1.4% in Frankfurt. In Asia, South Korea’s Kospi sank 2.5%, and Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 2.7%.

ASX 200 expected to rebound​

The Australian share market is expected to rebound on Tuesday despite a relatively poor start to the week in the United States.

According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is poised to open the day 39 points or 0.4% higher.

The threat of a punishing trade war sent Wall Street on a roller coaster Monday. After initially falling sharply on worries about President Donald Trump’s tariffs, U.S. stocks pared their losses after Mexico said it had negotiated a one-month reprieve.

The S&P 500 ended up falling 0.8% after Asian and European indexes logged worse drops. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 122 points, or 0.3%, and the Nasdaq composite sank 1.2%.

The U.S. stock market had been on track for a much worse loss at the start of trading on worries about how much pain U.S. companies would feel because of the tariffs. The S&P 500 was briefly down nearly 2%, and the Dow dropped as many as 665 points.

All told, the S&P 500 fell 45.96 points to 5,994.57. The Dow dropped 122.75 points to 44,421.91, and the Nasdaq composite sank 235.49 to 19,391.96.

In stock markets abroad, indexes fell 1% in London, 1.2% in Paris and 1.4% in Frankfurt. In Asia, South Korea’s Kospi sank 2.5%, and Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 2.7%

 

[bigdog]

Stock market today: Calm returns to Wall Street, and tech stocks lead US indexes higher

Calm returned to Wall Street, and tech stocks led U.S. indexes higher. The S&P 500 rose 0.7% Tuesday, a day after swinging sharply on worries that President Donald Trump’s tariffs could spark a trade war that would hurt economies around the world.

apnews.com

Calm returns to Wall Street, and tech stocks lead US indexes higher​

By STAN CHOE
Updated 8:21 AM GMT+11, February 5, 2025

NEW YORK (AP) — Calm returned to Wall Street Tuesday, and tech stocks led U.S. indexes higher following a strong profit report from Palantir Technologies, a darling benefiting from the artificial-intelligence boom.

The S&P 500 rose 0.7% a day after swinging sharply on worries that President Donald Trump’s tariffs could spark a trade war that would hurt economies around the world, including the United States.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 134 points, or 0.3%, and the Nasdaq composite climbed 1.4%.

Trump on Monday agreed to delay his taxes on U.S. imports of Canadian and Mexican products for a month, with the announcement on Canada coming after trading closed for the day. That bolstered Wall Street’s longstanding hopes that Trump’s tough talk on tariffs may be just that, talk. The hope is that Trump sees tariffs as a stick he can use in negotiations with trading partners rather than as a long-term policy.

That hope is built in part on traders’ belief that Trump would likely be turned off by the damage Wall Street would take if a worst-case, long-term trade war were to occur. Trump has pointed in the past to the stock market as a real-time measure of his performance.

But a trade war is still possible, and some analysts say more swings may be coming because Trump’s threats should be taken both seriously and literally.

“Investors have suggested the equity market is the US administration’s scorecard and any policy changes that hurt risk assets will be quickly dialed back,” Bank of America strategists led by Mark Cabana wrote in a BofA Global Research report. “We advise caution.”

They say a big takeaway from all the tariff tumult is that the Trump administration is transactional, and “nothing is settled until it is final.”

Trump is pressing ahead with a 10% tax on U.S. companies importing things from China. And China retaliated on Tuesday by announcing its own tariffs on some U.S. products and an antitrust investigation into Google.

But the 15% tariff on U.S. coal and liquefied natural gas products, as well as a 10% tariff on crude oil, agricultural machinery and large-engine cars imported from the United States won’t take effect until Monday. That leaves time for negotiations between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Some on Wall Street also see tariffs on China as separate from Trump’s moves against other trading partners. Trump may be more likely to keep tariffs on China for the longer term, as he did in his first term, because of a desire to separate the United States more from its geopolitical rival.

Outside of China, the result of all this tumult for Canada, Mexico, the European Union and other U.S. allies is more likely to be concessions and not tariffs, according to Thierry Wizman, a strategist at Macquarie.

The stock price of Google’s parent company, Alphabet, rose 2.5% even with China’s antitrust investigation. The company released its latest earnings report after trading ended for the day.

Elsewhere on Wall Street, stocks that had swung sharply a day before when worries were high about tariffs on Mexico and Canada were calmer.

Auto makers had dropped because so much of their production occurs in Mexico, for example. But General Motors rose 1.4%, and Ford Motor climbed 2.7%.

More attention was on earnings reports for U.S. companies, which likely would have been in the market’s spotlight if not for worries about a potential trade war.

Palantir Technologies jumped 24% and was one of the strongest forces lifting the S&P 500 after reporting a better profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. The Denver company also issued forecasts for upcoming revenue that were ahead of analysts’ projections, as CEO Alexander Karp said his company is at the “center of the AI revolution.”

Pharmaceutical giant Merck tumbled 9.1% despite beating sales and profit forecasts for the latest quarter. It gave a forecast for upcoming revenue that fell short of analysts’ expectations, due partly to a pause in shipments of one of its top-selling products to China.

All told, the S&P 500 rose 43.31 points to 6,037.88. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 134.13 to 44,556.04, and the Nasdaq composite gained 262.06 to 19,654.02.

In the bond market, Treasury yields eased after a report indicated the U.S. job market may be adding less upward pressure on inflation. U.S. employers advertised fewer job openings at the end of December than economists expected, suggesting a slowing but still healthy job market.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.51% from 4.56% late Monday. The two-year yield, which moves more closely with expectations for what the Federal Reserve will do with short-term interest rates, eased to 4.21% from 4.25%

In stock markets abroad, London’s FTSE 100 slipped 0.1%, but other big European indexes rose modestly.

In Asia, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng jumped 2.8%, and South Korea’s Kospi rose 1.1%.

ASX 200 expected to rise​

The Australian share market looks set to rise on Wednesday following a positive night of trade on Wall Street.

According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the day 53 points or 0.65% higher this morning.

Calm returned to Wall Street Tuesday, and tech stocks led U.S. indexes higher following a strong profit report from Palantir Technologies, a darling benefiting from the artificial-intelligence boom.

The S&P 500 rose 0.7% a day after swinging sharply on worries that President Donald Trump’s tariffs could spark a trade war that would hurt economies around the world, including the United States.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 134 points, or 0.3%, and the Nasdaq composite climbed 1.4%.

All told, the S&P 500 rose 43.31 points to 6,037.88. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 134.13 to 44,556.04, and the Nasdaq composite gained 262.06 to 19,654.02.

 

[bigdog]

Stock market today: Most of Wall Street rises as earnings reporting season ramps up

Wall Street drifted higher as gains for most stocks outweighed drops for Alphabet and some other big-name companies following their latest profit reports.

apnews.com

Most of Wall Street rises as earnings reporting season ramps up​

By STAN CHOE
Updated 8:11 AM GMT+11, February 6, 2025

NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street drifted higher Wednesday as gains for most stocks outweighed drops for Alphabet and some other big-name companies following their latest profit reports.

The S&P 500 rose 0.4% following mixed trading across European and Asian markets. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 317 points, or 0.7%, and the Nasdaq composite gained 0.2%.

Toymaker Mattel jumped 15.3% after blowing past analysts’ forecasts for profit in the latest quarter. Strength for its Hot Wheels brand helped make up for some softness for Barbie and other dolls. Mattel also gave a forecast for profit this upcoming year that topped analysts’ expectations.

Amgen rallied 6.5% and was one of the strongest forces pushing upward on the S&P 500. It reported stronger profit for the latest quarter than expected, thanks in part to growth for its Repatha medicine, which can lower bad cholesterol and reduce the risk of heart attack.

They helped offset a 7.3% drop for Alphabet, which sank even though Google’s parent company reported stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. Investors focused instead on slowing growth for its cloud business, whose revenue fell short of forecasts. They also homed in on the $75 billion Alphabet is budgeting for investments this year, roughly $15 billion more than analysts expected, as it remains in the rush to develop artificial-intelligence technology.

Advanced Micro Devices fell 6.3% even though the chip company edged past profit expectations for the latest quarter. While analysts called AMD’s results solid, they also asked why CEO Lisa Su did not give more detail about expectations for the performance of its AI offerings specifically.

Investors always want companies to deliver bigger profits, but the hopes may be even higher than usual given worries about how much faster stock prices have climbed than corporate profits, causing critics to call them expensive. Uncertainty is also hanging over the global economy because of President Donald Trump’s tariffs.

After rocking financial markets around the world at the start of this week, worries about a potentially punishing global trade war have eased a bit after Trump gave 30-day reprieves for tariffs on both Mexico and Canada. That bolstered traders’ hopes that Trump sees tariffs as merely a tool for negotiation, rather than as a long-term policy.

Goldman Sachs economist David Mericle says a further extension may happen, but he sees the tariff risk for both countries likely remaining until the end of a review of the United States’ existing trade agreement with the two countries, which could be in the middle of next year.

In the meantime, Trump has pressed ahead with tariffs on Chinese goods, and Mericle expects tariffs to hit autos from the European Union, among other potential moves. That could drive a one-time boost to inflation, which could leave a widely followed measure of underlying inflation trends at 2.6% in December, above the Federal Reserve’s target of 2%.

One of the fears hurting Wall Street is that the upward pressure on inflation could keep the Fed from cutting interest rates this year, after it began doing so in September in order to relax pressure on the economy and give the job market some help.

Yields in the bond market fell Wednesday after a report said growth for mining, finance and other U.S. services businesses was weaker last month than economists expected. The survey by the Institute for Supply Management found many businesses citing poor weather conditions.

Businesses also “mentioned preparations or concerns related to potential U.S. government tariff actions; however, there was little mention of current business impacts as a result,” according to Steve Miller, chair of the ISM’s Services Business Survey Committee.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury yield fell to 4.42% from 4.52% late Tuesday.

On Wall Street, the Walt Disney Company swung from an early gain to a loss of 2.4% after delivering a better profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected, thanks in part to a strong performance for its “ Moana 2 ″ movie.

All told, the S&P 500 rose 23.60 points to 6,061.48. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 317.24 to 44,873.28, and the Nasdaq composite added 38.31 to 19,692.33.

In stock markets abroad, European indexes were mixed amid relatively modest movements. In Asia, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 0.9%, while South Korea’s Kospi gained 1.1%.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 edged up 0.1% as Honda Motor Co. jumped after Japanese media reports said its talks to set up a joint holding company with rival Nissan Motor Corp. were unraveling. Nissan’s stock fell 4.9%.

ASX 200 expected to push higher​

The Australian share market looks set to rise on Thursday following a decent night of trade on Wall Street.

According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the day 59 points or 0.7% higher this morning.

Wall Street drifted higher Wednesday as gains for most stocks outweighed drops for Alphabet and some other big-name companies following their latest profit reports.

The S&P 500 rose 0.4% following mixed trading across European and Asian markets. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 317 points, or 0.7%, and the Nasdaq composite gained 0.2%.

All told, the S&P 500 rose 23.60 points to 6,061.48. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 317.24 to 44,873.28, and the Nasdaq composite added 38.31 to 19,692.33.

 

[bigdog]

Stock market today: Wall Street finishes mixed as strong fashion, tobacco stocks offset Ford's drop

Wall Street drifted through a mixed day of trading as rising fashion and cigarette stocks worked against drops for Ford Motor and Qualcomm.

apnews.com

Wall Street finishes mixed as strong fashion, tobacco stocks offset Ford’s drop​

By STAN CHOE
Updated 8:20 AM GMT+11, February 7, 2025

NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street drifted through mixed trading Thursday as rising fashion and cigarette stocks worked against drops for Ford Motor and Qualcomm.

The S&P 500 rose 0.4% following healthy gains for stock markets across much of Europe and Asia. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 125 points, or 0.3%, and the Nasdaq composite gained 0.5%.

Tapestry, the company behind the Coach and Kate Spade brands, helped lead the market and jumped 12%. It reported stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected after attracting new, younger customers. Tapestry also raised its forecast for revenue and profit growth this fiscal year.

Philip Morris International, which sells Marlboro cigarettes and smokeless tobacco products around the world, was one of the strongest forces pushing upward on the S&P 500 and rallied 10.9% after reporting a better profit than expected. It also gave financial forecasts that topped expectations, and analysts pointed in particular to strength for its Zyn nicotine pouches.

They helped offset a 7.5% drop for Ford Motor, which fell even though the automaker delivered a stronger profit and revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected. Investors focused instead on Ford’s financial forecasts for 2025, which the company said incorporates “headwinds related to market factors.”

The company gave a forecasted range for how much cash it will generate this year whose midpoint fell below analysts’ expectations, for example.

Qualcomm also kept indexes in check after falling 3.7%. The company, whose products help power smartphones and other devices, reported profit for the latest quarter that topped analysts’ forecasts, and analysts called the performance solid. But they also said expectations were high, and worries are rising about the wireless chip industry broadly.

In the bond market, Treasury yields held relatively steady after a report said more U.S. workers filed for unemployment benefits last week than expected, though the number remains low compared with history. A more comprehensive report will arrive on Friday, showing how many jobs U.S. employers added during the month of January.

The hope is Friday’s data will show a job market that remains solid enough to keep worries about a possible downturn at bay but not so strong that it pushes upward on inflation. The U.S. economy has remained much more solid than critics feared, but pressure is rising in part because of the threat of potential tariffs coming from President Donald Trump.

After rocking financial markets around the world at the start of this week, worries about a potentially punishing global trade war have eased a bit after Trump gave 30-day reprieves for tariffs on both Mexico and Canada.

While discussing Ford Motor’s earnings and financial forecasts, CEO Jim Farley said his company can manage a “few weeks” of tariffs of 25% on Canadian and Mexican imports. But if they’re protracted, they would have “a huge impact on our industry,” resulting in higher prices for customers, losses of U.S. jobs and the elimination of billions of dollars of industry profits.

Elsewhere on Wall Street, another company reliant on spending by consumers around the world, Ralph Lauren, rallied 9.7% after reporting stronger profit and revenue than expected. Growth was particularly strong in China, where the company recently opened stores in Hong Kong and Beijing.

Eli Lilly rose 3.3% after the drugmaker showed how demand for its hot-selling diabetes and obesity treatments is swelling its profits.
Specialist Dilip Patel works at his post on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

Specialist Dilip Patel works at his post on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

Honeywell fell 5.6% and was one of the heaviest weights on the S&P 500. It announced it will split into three independent, publicly-traded companies, following in the footsteps of other conglomerates such as General Electric.

The North Carolina company, one of the few U.S. conglomerates still in existence, expects to complete the spin-off of its automation and aerospace technologies businesses sometime in late 2026.

All told, the S&P 500 rose 22.09 points to 6,083.57. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 125.65 to 44,747.63, and the Nasdaq composite rose 99.66 to 19,791.99.

In stock markets abroad, London’s FTSE 100 jumped 1.2% after the Bank of England cut its main interest rate as it slashed its forecast for economic growth. The British economy has barely grown over the past six months, and the Bank of England halved its growth projection for the British economy this year to 0.75%.

Stock indexes also rose 1.5% in Paris, 1.4% in Hong Kong and 0.6% in Tokyo.

In Japan, Honda Motor Co. fell, and Nissan Motor Corp. rose after Japanese media said they were ditching their talks to set up a joint holding company. Neither company confirmed the report. An update on the talks is expected by mid-February, but no date has been set.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury held steady at 4.43%, where it was late Wednesday.

ASX 200 expected to fall​

The Australian share market looks set to fall on Friday following a mixed night of trade in the United States.

According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open 18 points or 0.25% lower this morning.

Wall Street drifted through mixed trading Thursday as rising fashion and cigarette stocks worked against drops for Ford Motor and Qualcomm.

The S&P 500 rose 0.4% following healthy gains for stock markets across much of Europe and Asia. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 125 points, or 0.3%, and the Nasdaq composite gained 0.5%.

All told, the S&P 500 rose 22.09 points to 6,083.57. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 125.65 to 44,747.63, and the Nasdaq composite rose 99.66 to 19,791.99.

 

[bigdog]

Stock market today: Wall Street slumps as worries worsen about inflation and tariffs

U.S. stocks slumped as worries flared again on Wall Street about tariffs and inflation. The S&P 500 fell 0.9% Friday and erased what had been a modest gain for the week.

apnews.com

Wall Street slumps as worries worsen about inflation and tariffs​

By STAN CHOE
Updated 8:21 AM GMT+11, February 8, 2025

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks slumped Friday as worries flared again on Wall Street about tariffs and inflation.

The S&P 500 fell 0.9% and erased what had been a modest gain for the week. It’s one of the worse drops for the index so far in the young year, but it remains near its record set two weeks ago.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average sank 444 points, or 1%, and a sharp fall for Amazon after its latest profit report dragged the Nasdaq composite to a market-leading loss of 1.4%.

Treasury yields also climbed in the bond market after a discouraging report on Friday morning suggested sentiment is unexpectedly souring among U.S. consumers. The preliminary report from the University of Michigan said U.S. consumers are expecting inflation in the year ahead to hit 4.3%, the highest such forecast since 2023.

That’s a full percentage point above what consumers said they were expecting a month earlier, and it’s the second straight increase of an unusual amount. Economists pointed to the possibility of U.S. tariffs on a wide range of imported products, which President Donald Trump has proposed and could ultimately push up prices for U.S. consumers.

Trump said at a White House press conference Friday that he’s likely to have an announcement on Monday or Tuesday on “reciprocal tariffs, where a country pays so much or charges us so much, and we do the same.”

The consumer-sentiment data followed a mixed update on the U.S. job market, which is often each month’s most anticipated economic report. It showed hiring last month was less than half of December’s rate, but it also included encouraging nuggets for workers: The unemployment rate eased, and workers saw bigger gains in average wages than economists expected.

All the data taken together could keep the Federal Reserve on hold when it comes to interest rates. The Fed began cutting its main interest rate in September in order to relax the pressure on the economy and job market, but it warned at the end of the year that it may cut fewer times in 2025 than it earlier expected given worries about inflation staying stubbornly high.

Interest rates are one of the things Wall Street cares most about because lower rates can lead to higher prices for stocks and other investments. The downside is they can also give inflation more fuel.

For Scott Wren, senior global market strategist at Wells Fargo Investment Institute, the jobs report did nothing to change his forecast for the Fed to cut the federal funds rate just once in 2025. That’s a touch more conservative than many traders on Wall Street, who collectively see a 45% chance the Fed will cut at least twice, according to data from CME Group. Of course, some traders are also betting on the possibility for zero cuts.

Wren said financial markets could stay shaky in the near term, not only because of uncertainty about interest rates but also about Trump’s tariffs and other unknowns around the world.

After rocking financial markets at the start of this week, worries about a potentially punishing global trade war had eased a bit after Trump gave 30-day reprieves for tariffs on both Mexico and Canada.

In the meantime, stocks of big U.S. companies continue to swing as they report how much profit they made during the last three months of 2024. Most are reporting better results than expected, which is typical, but that’s not always enough.

Amazon, one of Wall Street’s most influential companies, topped analysts’ expectations for earnings at the end of 2024, but its stock nevertheless fell 4.1%. Investors focused instead on its forecast for upcoming revenue, which fell short of analysts’ expectations.

Homebuilders also tumbled to sharp losses as fewer cuts to interest rates by the Fed could help keep mortgage rates high. D.R. Horton fell 5%, and Lennar sank 4.2%.

On the winning side of Wall Street was Expedia Group, which leaped 17.3% after reporting better profit for the last three months of 2024 than analysts had forecast.

Expedia CEO Ariane Gorin said demand for travel during the latest quarter was stronger than expected, and the company is also bringing back its dividend for investors. It had suspended its payouts to shareholders in 2020 after the COVID-19 pandemic crushed the travel industry.

All told, the S&P 500 fell 57.58 points to 6,025.99. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 444.23 to 44,303.40, and the Nasdaq composite sank 268.59 to 19,523.40.

In the bond market, the 10-year Treasury yield rose to 4.48% from 4.44% late Thursday. The two-year Treasury yield, which more closely tracks expectations for the Fed, rose more. It climbed to 4.28% from 4.22%.

A fear among economists is that when U.S. households expect inflation to be high in the future, they could begin buying things in advance and making other moves that can leadto a self-fulfilling cycle that worsens inflation. That could push the Fed to keep the federal funds rate higher than it otherwise would.

In stock markets abroad, indexes fell modestly across Europe after finishing mixed in Asia.

 

[bigdog]

ASX 200 expected to fall again​

The Australian share market looks set to fall again on Monday following a poor finish to the week on Wall Street on Friday.

According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the day 64 points or 0.8% lower.

U.S. stocks slumped Friday as worries flared again on Wall Street about tariffs and inflation.

The S&P 500 fell 0.9% and erased what had been a modest gain for the week. It’s one of the worse drops for the index so far in the young year, but it remains near its record set two weeks ago.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average sank 444 points, or 1%, and a sharp fall for Amazon after its latest profit report dragged the Nasdaq composite to a market-leading loss of 1.4%.
All told, the S&P 500 fell 57.58 points to 6,025.99. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 444.23 to 44,303.40, and the Nasdaq composite sank 268.59 to 19,523.40.

 

[bigdog]

Stock market today: Wall Street takes Trump's latest tariff threats in stride, and indexes rise

U.S. stock indexes rose as Wall Street took President Donald Trump’s latest threat on tariffs in stride.

apnews.com

Wall Street takes Trump’s latest tariff threats in stride, and indexes rise​

By STAN CHOE
Updated 8:13 AM GMT+11, February 11, 2025

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks rose Monday as Wall Street took President Donald Trump’s latest threat on tariffs in stride.

The S&P 500 climbed 0.7%, coming off a losing week that was bookended by worries about how potential tariffs could push up inflation and threaten the economy. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 167 points, or 0.4%, and the Nasdaq composite rallied 1% as Nvidia and other Big Tech stocks led the way.

The bond market also remained relatively firm, with Treasury yields making only modest moves after Trump said over the weekend that he would announce 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports, as well as other import duties later in the week.

Fear around tariffs has been at the center of Wall Street’s moves recently, and experts say the market likely has more swings ahead. The price of gold, which often rises when investors are feeling nervous, climbed again Monday to top $2,930 per ounce and set another record. But Trump has shown he can be just as quick to pull back on threats, like he did with 25% tariffs he had announced on Canada and Mexico, suggesting they may be merely a negotiating chip rather than a true long-term policy.

Trump, of course, has already gone ahead with 10% tariffs on China. Those will likely affect Wall Street by cleaving winning industries from losing ones, but they won’t necessarily drag the entire market lower, according to Michael Wilson and other strategists at Morgan Stanley. A big, market-wide impact would be more likely “if we were to see sustained tariffs on a range of countries including 25% tariffs on Mexico and Canada.”

Stocks of U.S. steel and aluminum producers jumped Monday, banking on expectations tariffs could help their profits, while the overall S&P 500 index remained relatively calm.

Nucor rose 5.6%, Cleveland-Cliffs jumped 17.9% and Alcoa climbed 2.2%.

Some companies that have to buy steel in their manufacturing swung, but not so sharply. General Motors fell 1.7%, Caterpillar slipped 0.2% and Ford Motor was flat.

In the meantime, earnings reports from big U.S. companies also helped drive trading.

McDonald’s climbed 4.8% even though it reported profit and revenue for the end of 2024 that were just shy of analysts’ expectations. Investors focused instead on better-than-expected strength for restaurants outside the United States, particularly in the Middle East, Japan and other markets with licensed McDonald’s locations.

Big Tech stocks were some of the strongest forces pushing the S&P 500 higher, including gains of 2.9% for Nvidia and 4.5% for Broadcom. They had come under pressure last month after a Chinese upstart upended Wall Street’s artificial-intelligence boom by saying it had developed a large language model that could perform like the world’s best without having to use the most expensive, top-flight chips.

Despite the development by DeepSeek, big U.S. companies have since said they’re still planning to plow billions of dollars into their AI endeavors. That’s calmed worries that DeepSeek could have turned off a huge spigot of spending for the industry, at least for now.

Such gains helped offset a 7.9% drop for Incyte after the biopharmaceutical company reported weaker profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected.

All told, the S&P 500 rose 40.45 points to 6,066.44. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 167.01 to 44,4701.41, and the Nasdaq composite jumped 190.87 to 19,714.27.

In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury held steady at 4.50%, where it was late Friday. The yield on the two-year Treasury, which more closely tracks expectations for what the Federal Reserve will do with short-term interest rates, fell to 4.27% from 4.29%.

The Fed cut its main interest rate several times through the end of last year, but traders have been sharply curtailing their expectations for more reductions in 2025, in part because of fears about potentially higher inflation from tariffs. While lower rates can give a boost to the economy and investment prices, they can also give inflation more fuel.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell will be offering testimony before Congress later this week, where he could offer more hints about what the Fed is thinking. In December, Fed officials sent financial markets sharply lower after indicating they may cut rates only twice this year. Now, some traders and economists think the Fed may not cut at all.

Reports are also coming this week on inflation, which could further drive the Fed’s actions. On Wednesday, economists expect a report to show prices for eggs, gasoline and other living costs for U.S. consumers were overall 2.9% higher in January than a year earlier.

In stock markets abroad, indexes rose across much of Europe and Asia.

Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 was virtually unchanged after Japan’s government reported a record current account surplus last year.

ASX 200 expected to rebound​

The Australian share market is expected to return to form on Tuesday following a strong start to the week in the United States.

According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is poised to open the day 31 points or 0.35% higher.

U.S. stocks rose Monday as Wall Street took President Donald Trump’s latest threat on tariffs in stride.

The S&P 500 climbed 0.7%, coming off a losing week that was bookended by worries about how potential tariffs could push up inflation and threaten the economy. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 167 points, or 0.4%, and the Nasdaq composite rallied 1% as Nvidia and other Big Tech stocks led the way.

All told, the S&P 500 rose 40.45 points to 6,066.44. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 167.01 to 44,4701.41, and the Nasdaq composite jumped 190.87 to 19,714.27.

 

[bigdog]

Stock market today: Wall Street holds firm following Trump's latest tariffs

Wall Street held relatively firm following President Donald Trump’s latest tariff escalation and after the Federal Reserve hinted interest rates may not change for a while.

apnews.com

Wall Street holds firm following Trump’s latest tariffs​

By STAN CHOE
Updated 9:18 AM GMT+11, February 12, 2025

NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street held relatively firm on Tuesday following President Donald Trump’s latest tariff escalation and after the Federal Reserve hinted interest rates may not change for a while.

The S&P 500 was virtually unchanged and edged up by less than 0.1% in the market’s first trading since Trump announced 25% tariffs on all foreign steel and aluminum coming into the country. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 123 points, or 0.3%, and the Nasdaq composite slipped 0.4%.

The moves were modest not only for U.S. stocks but also in the bond market, where Treasury yields rose by only a bit.

The threat of a possible trade war is very real, of course, with high potential stakes. Most of Wall Street agrees that substantial and sustained tariffs would push up prices for U.S. households and ultimately lead to big pain for financial markets around the world. The European Union’s chief, Ursula von der Leyen, said on Tuesday that “unjustified tariffs on the EU will not go unanswered — they will trigger firm and proportionate countermeasures.”

But trading remained mostly calm in part because Trump has shown he can be quick to pull back on such threats. That’s what he did earlier with 25% tariffs he had announced for all imports from Canada and Mexico, suggesting tariffs may be merely a negotiating chip rather than a true long-term policy. That in turn has much of Wall Street hoping the worst-case scenario may not happen.

“The metal tariffs may serve as negotiating leverage,” according to Solita Marcelli, chief investment officer, Americas, at UBS Global Wealth Management.

In the meantime, much of Wall Street’s focus on Tuesday swung to a different part of Washington. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said again in testimony on Capitol Hill that the Fed is in no hurry to ease interest rates any further.

The Fed had cut its main interest rate sharply through the end of last year, hoping to give a boost to the economy. But worries about inflation potentially staying stubbornly high have forced the Fed and traders alike to cut back expectations for cuts in 2025. Some traders are even betting on the possibility of zero, in part because of worries about the effects of tariffs.

“We’re in a pretty good place,” Powell said about where the economy and interest rates are currently. He said again he’s aware that going too slowly on rate cuts could damage the economy, while moving too quickly could push inflation higher.

Higher rates tend to put downward pressure on prices for stocks and other investments, while pressuring the economy by making borrowing more expensive. That could be risky for a U.S. stock market that critics say already looks too expensive. The S&P 500 is not far from its all-time high set late last month.

One way companies can offset such downward pressure on their stock prices is to deliver stronger profits. And big U.S. companies have been mostly doing just that recently, as they report how much profit they made during the last three months of 2024. That, though, hasn’t always been enough.

Marriott International fell 5.4% even though it reported a better profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. Investors focused instead on its forecasted range for an important underlying measure of profit this upcoming year, which fell short of what analysts were expecting.

Humana sank 3.5% despite reporting a milder loss than analysts expected. The insurer and health care company offered a forecast for profit in 2025 that fell short of Wall Street’s expectations.

Helping to offset such losses was Coca-Cola, which rallied 4.7% after reporting stronger profit and revenue than analysts expected. Growth in China, Brazil and the United States helped lead the way.

DuPont climbed 6.8% after the chemical company likewise reported better profit than Wall Street expected.

All told, the S&P 500 rose 2.06 points to 6,068.50. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 123.24 to 44,593.65, and the Nasdaq composite fell 70.41 to 19,643.86.

In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 4.53% from 4.50% late Monday. The two-year Treasury yield, which moves more closely with expectations for upcoming action by the Fed, held steady. It remained at 4.28%, where it was late Monday.

In stock markets abroad, indexes were mixed across Europe and Asia. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 1.1%, and South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.7% for some of the bigger moves, while Japanese markets were closed for a national holiday.

ASX 200 expected to rise
The Australian share market looks set to rise on Wednesday following a mixed night of trade on Wall Street.

According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the day 2 points higher this morning.

Wall Street held relatively firm on Tuesday following President Donald Trump’s latest tariff escalation and after the Federal Reserve hinted interest rates may not change for a while.

The S&P 500 was virtually unchanged and edged up by less than 0.1% in the market’s first trading since Trump announced 25% tariffs on all foreign steel and aluminum coming into the country. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 123 points, or 0.3%, and the Nasdaq composite slipped 0.4%.

The moves were modest not only for U.S. stocks but also in the bond market, where Treasury yields rose by only a bit.

All told, the S&P 500 rose 2.06 points to 6,068.50. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 123.24 to 44,593.65, and the Nasdaq composite fell 70.41 to 19,643.86.

 

[bigdog]

Stock market today: Most of Wall Street sinks after inflation worsens

Most U.S. stocks fell after a report said inflation is unexpectedly worsening for Americans. The S&P 500 dropped 0.3% Wednesday, though it had been on track for a much worse loss of 1.1% at the start of trading.

apnews.com

Most of Wall Street sinks after inflation worsens​

By STAN CHOE
Updated 8:28 AM GMT+11, February 13, 2025

NEW YORK (AP) — Most U.S. stocks fell Wednesday after a report showed inflation is unexpectedly worsening for Americans.

The S&P 500 dropped 0.3%, though it had been on track for a much worse loss of 1.1% at the start of trading. The Dow Jones Industrial Average sank 225 points, or 0.5%, while the Nasdaq composite edged higher by less than 0.1%.

Stocks pared their losses through the day as the price of oil eased. A barrel of benchmark U.S. crude fell 2.7% below $72 after President Donald Trump said he had agreed with Russia’s president to begin “negotiations” on ending the war in Ukraine. Such a move could free up the global movement of crude.

Still, Wall Street’s overall momentum remained downward, and the majority of stocks fell. Treasury yields also remained notably higher in the bond market, cranking up the pressure on financial markets after the morning’s report said U.S. consumers had to pay higher prices for eggs, gasoline and other costs of living than economists expected.

Overall inflation was 3% for U.S. consumers in January. That was worse than the 2.9% inflation rate of December, which is what economists expected to see again.

The inflation report suggested not only that pressure on U.S. households’ budgets is amplifying but also that traders on Wall Street were correct to forecast the Federal Reserve will deliver less relief for Americans through lower interest rates this year.
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AP AUDIO: Stock market today: Wall Street falls after worse inflation data

Inflation worries have stocks lower.

The Fed had cut its main interest rate sharply from September through the end of last year, intending to make borrowing cheaper, help the economy and boost prices for stocks, bonds and other investments. But the Fed warned at the end of 2024 it may not cut rates by as much in 2025 because of worries about inflation staying stubbornly high. Its goal is to keep inflation at 2%, and lower rates can give inflation more fuel.

Some investors were betting on the Fed not cutting rates at all in 2025, even before Wednesday’s report on the consumer price index, or CPI.

“The hotter than expected CPI confirms investors’ anxiety regarding too-hot inflation that will keep the Fed on the sidelines,” said Sameer Samana, head of global equities and real assets at Wells Fargo Investment Institute.

And January’s reading doesn’t account for any of the tariffs that Trump has recently announced, with possibly more on the way, which economists expect will raise prices for imports further. Tariffs “will make their impact felt later in the year,” Samana said.

Following January’s discouraging inflation data, traders are betting on a 29% chance the Fed will not cut rates at all this year, according to data from CME Group. That’s up from a less than 20% chance seen the day before.

Such expectations sent the yield on the 10-year Treasury up to 4.62% from 4.54% late Tuesday, which is a notable move for the bond market.

When a 10-year Treasury, which is seen as one of the safest investments possible, is paying that much in interest, investors are less likely to pay high prices for stocks, which carry a higher risk of seeing their prices go to zero. That puts downward pressure on U.S. stock prices that critics say already look too expensive after running to repeated records last year, with the latest for the S&P 500 coming last month.

One of the few ways companies have to counteract such downward pressure on their stock prices is to deliver stronger profits.

Gilead Sciences did just that, and its stock rose 7.5% after the pharmaceutical company topped profit expectations for the latest quarter. It credited strength for its HIV products, among other things.

CVS Health jumped 14.9% after easily topping Wall Street’s revenue and profit expectations for the latest quarter.

But topping profit forecasts isn’t always enough. Ride-hailing app Lyft fell 7.9% despite reporting stronger earnings than expected. Lyft’s revenue for the final three months of 2024 fell just short of analysts’ forecasts.

Homebuilders and other companies that can feel pain from mortgage rates staying higher amid a Fed on hold also weighed on the market. Home Depot fell 2.2%, Builders FirstSource sank 3.5% and Lennar dropped 2.7%.

Exxon Mobil sank 3% as oil-and-gas companies fell broadly following the 2.4% drop for the price of a barrel of Brent crude, the international standard, to $75.18.

Frontier Group Holdings, the parent company of Frontier Airlines, lost 4.9% after Spirit Airlines rejected a third takeover bid from the budget rival. Spirit said that it would focus on its own plan to emerge from the protection of a U.S. bankruptcy court and stabilize its finances.

All told, the S&P 500 fell 16.53 points to 6,051.97. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 225.09 to 44,368.56, and the Nasdaq composite added 6.09 to 19,649.95.

In stock markets abroad, indexes were mostly higher across much of Europe and Asia.

ASX 200 expected to edge higher​

The Australian share market looks set to rise on Thursday despite a poor night of trade on Wall Street.

According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the day 4 points higher this morning.

Most U.S. stocks fell Wednesday after a report showed inflation is unexpectedly worsening for Americans.

The S&P 500 dropped 0.3%, though it had been on track for a much worse loss of 1.1% at the start of trading. The Dow Jones Industrial Average sank 225 points, or 0.5%, while the Nasdaq composite edged higher by less than 0.1%.

All told, the S&P 500 fell 16.53 points to 6,051.97. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 225.09 to 44,368.56, and the Nasdaq composite added 6.09 to 19,649.95.

 

[bigdog]

Stock market today: Wall Street rallies near a record after yawning at Trump’s latest tariff threat

U.S. stocks rallied to the brink of a record after more companies reported fatter profits than expected. The S&P 500 rose 1% Thursday.

apnews.com

Wall Street rallies near a record after yawning at Trump’s latest tariff threat​

By STAN CHOE
Updated 9:07 AM GMT+11, February 14, 2025

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks rallied to the brink of a record Thursday after more companies reported fatter profits than expected. Wall Street mostly yawned, again, at the latest announcement on tariffs by President Donald Trump, which may not take full effect for at least several weeks.

The S&P 500 climbed 1% to pull within 0.1% of its all-time high set last month. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 342 points, or 0.8%, and the Nasdaq composite jumped 1.5%.

MGM Resorts International leaped to one of the market’s biggest gains, 17.5%, after reporting stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. It cited growth in China and said trends are looking up for its Las Vegas and North American digital businesses.

Other companies reporting better profit than expected included GE HealthCare Technologies, which rose 8.8%, Molson Coors Beverage, which gained 9.5%, and Robinhood Markets, which jumped 14.1%.

Such reports, along with a remarkably solid U.S. economy, have kept U.S. stocks near their records. A report on Thursday said fewer U.S. workers applied for unemployment benefits last week, the latest signal of a firm job market.

That’s even though many downward forces are weighing on stock prices.

Chief among them are worries about stubbornly high inflation. A report on Thursday said inflation at the wholesale level was hotter than economists expected last month, following a similar report from the day before on inflation that U.S. consumers are feeling.

Tariffs could push up inflation even further. And Trump on Thursday rolled out his plan to increase U.S. tariffs on imports from other countries that will be customized, based in part on how much tax each country charges on U.S. goods.

While economists warn about the pain such tariffs can create, financial markets have increasingly taken the threats in stride. Belief is strong that Trump is using tough talk to drive negotiations, but he may not fully go through with it in order to avoid damaging the U.S. stock market and economy.

It could take weeks or a few months to complete the necessary reviews for the tariffs announced on Thursday, according to a senior White House official who insisted on anonymity to preview the details on a call with reporters. That implies plenty of time for negotiations that could ease the ultimate impact.

Of course, Wall Street’s belief that the stock market is serving as a guardrail hemming in Trump may prove dangerous. If the stock market keeps gliding through each escalating threat, it could embolden Trump to make even bigger moves.

But, for now at least, Trump may be “boxed in” a bit following the high inflation figures that have hit this week, according to Thierry Wizman, a strategist at Macquarie.

Trump has already shown he can quickly pull back on threats, like when he put a 30-day pause on 25% tariffs he had announced for all imports from Canada and Mexico.

Still, Trump followed through on a 10% tariff on Chinese products. GE HealthCare said Thursday it took those tariffs into account when it drew up its forecasts for profit and other financial measures in 2025.

On Wall Street, Deere & Co. fell 2.2% after reporting drops in its revenue and profit for the latest quarter. The farm equipment manufacturer said it was focused on reducing inventory amidst the “uncertain market conditions” its customers were facing.

Reddit, the online message board, dropped 5.3% even as it handily outdistanced Wall Street’s fourth quarter sales and profit targets.

Cisco Systems gained 2.1% after reporting stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. It cited strength for a wide range of its products, including for artificial-intelligence infrastructure.

All told, the S&P 500 rose 63.10 points to 6,115.07. Its all-time high is 6,118.71, set on Jan. 23. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 342.87 to 44,711.43, and the Nasdaq composite jumped 295.69 to 19,945.64.

In the bond market, Treasury yields eased. While hotter-than-expected inflation data typically sends yields higher, economists saw some encouraging nuggets underneath the surface in Thursday’s report. Easier health care services costs, for example, could end up helping to pull a different measure of inflation lower, one that the Federal Reserve considers a better measuring stick than the consumer price or producer price indexes.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.53% from 4.63%.

Besides squeezing tighter on U.S. households’ budgets, stubbornly high inflation is likely to keep the Federal Reserve on hold for a while when it comes to providing relief to Americans through lower interest rates.

The Fed had cut its main interest rate sharply from September through the end of last year, intending to make borrowing cheaper, help the economy and boost prices for stocks, bonds and other investments. But the Fed warned at the end of 2024 it may not cut rates by as much in 2025 because of worries about inflation staying stubbornly high. Its goal is to keep inflation at 2%, and lower rates can give inflation more fuel.

In stock markets abroad, indexes were mixed across Europe and Asia.

ASX 200 expected to charge higher​

The Australian share market looks set to charge higher on Friday following a strong night of trade in the United States.

According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open 82 points or 1% higher this morning.

U.S. stocks rallied to the brink of a record Thursday after more companies reported fatter profits than expected. Wall Street mostly yawned, again, at the latest announcement on tariffs by President Donald Trump, which may not take full effect for at least several weeks.

The S&P 500 climbed 1% to pull within 0.1% of its all-time high set last month. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 342 points, or 0.8%, and the Nasdaq composite jumped 1.5%.

All told, the S&P 500 rose 63.10 points to 6,115.07. Its all-time high is 6,118.71, set on Jan. 23. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 342.87 to 44,711.43, and the Nasdaq composite jumped 295.69 to 19,945.64.

 

[bigdog]

Stock market today: Wall Street finishes a winning week just shy of a record

Wall Street edged back from an all-time high following mixed profit reports from big companies. The S&P 500 barely budged on Friday and slipped by a hair, a day after rallying within 0.1% of its record set last month.

apnews.com

Wall Street finishes a winning week just shy of a record​

By STAN CHOE
Updated 9:07 AM GMT+11, February 15, 2025

NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street edged back from its all-time high on Friday, as U.S. stock indexes drifted following mixed profit reports from big companies.

The S&P 500 barely budged and slipped by less than 0.1%, a day after rallying within 0.1% of its record set last month. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 165 points, or 0.4%, while the Nasdaq composite rose 0.4%.

The S&P 500 still closed out its first winning week in the last three thanks in part to reports showing companies made even fatter profits at the end of 2024 than analysts expected. They’ve helped the market power through a range of worries centered on higher interest rates and stubborn inflation.

Airbnb climbed 14.4% after reporting stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected as customers booked more nights on its platform. Wynn Resorts jumped 10.4% after likewise topping earnings expectations, thanks in part to strength for its Las Vegas operations.

On the losing side of Wall Street was Applied Materials, which dropped 8.2%. The company, whose products help make semiconductor chips, displays and other tech, also reported stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. But it gave a forecasted range for upcoming revenue whose midpoint fell short of Wall Street’s expectations.

All told, the S&P 500 slipped 0.44 to 6,114.63. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 165.35 points to 44,546.08, and the Nasdaq composite rose 81.13 to 20,026.77.

In the bond market, Treasury yields fell after a report said sales at U.S. retailers weakened by much more last month than economists expected. Bad weather, including bitingly cold temperatures in the South and devastating wildfires in California, may have helped keep shoppers away from stores and auto dealerships.

The hope among investors has been for economic data to remain at a Goldilocks level, where it’s not so weak that it raises worries about a downturn but not so strong that it creates upward pressure on inflation.

This past week featured a couple disappointing reports that showed inflation unexpectedly accelerated last month. Besides squeezing tighter on U.S. households’ budgets, such stubbornly high inflation is likely to keep the Federal Reserve on hold for a while when it comes to providing relief through lower interest rates.

Inflation may feel more upward pressure from tariffs that President Donald Trump has announced recently. So far, though, the U.S. stock market has taken such threats in stride. The belief is that Trump is using tariffs as a tool for negotiation, and he may ultimately avoid triggering a punishing global trade war in order to prevent damage to the U.S. stock market and economy.

His most recent tariff announcement, for example, won’t take full effect for at least several weeks. That leaves time for Washington and other countries to negotiate and hopefully lessen the ultimate shock.

“Tariffs on Chinese goods have gone into effect,” said Brian Jacobsen, chief economist at Annex Wealth Management. “All of the other things that have been discussed — reciprocal tariffs, steel and aluminum tariffs, and tariffs on Canada and Mexico — haven’t actually gone into effect, yet. That opens the door the negotiations.”

The market’s remarkable equanimity, of course, could be dangerous if things don’t go according to Wall Street’s expectations, or if it emboldens Trump to make even more forceful moves.

In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.47% from 4.54% late Thursday. It’s been swinging sharply since the Federal Reserve began cutting its main interest rate sharply from September intending to make borrowing cheaper, help the economy and boost prices for stocks, bonds and other investments.

The 10-year yield has been mostly climbing since then, in the opposite direction the Fed has taken short-term rates, as the U.S. economy has remained solid and as worries built about tariffs, increasing deficits and other potential policies that could goose inflation along with economic growth.

The Fed warned at the end of 2024 it may not cut rates by as much in 2025 because of worries about inflation staying stubbornly high. Its goal is to keep inflation at 2%, and lower rates can give inflation more fuel.

In stock markets abroad, indexes were mixed across Europe and Asia.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng surged 3.7% for one of the biggest moves. Technology stocks were particularly strong, including big rallies for video games firm Tencent, smartphone maker Xiaomi and e-commerce firm Alibaba.

 

[bigdog]

ASX 200 expected to fall​

The Australian share market looks set to fall on Monday following a mixed finish to the week on Wall Street on Friday.

According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the day 52 points or 0.6% lower.

Wall Street edged back from its all-time high on Friday, as U.S. stock indexes drifted following mixed profit reports from big companies.

The S&P 500 barely budged and slipped by less than 0.1%, a day after rallying within 0.1% of its record set last month. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 165 points, or 0.4%, while the Nasdaq composite rose 0.4%.

The S&P 500 still closed out its first winning week in the last three thanks in part to reports showing companies made even fatter profits at the end of 2024 than analysts expected. They’ve helped the market power through a range of worries centered on higher interest rates and stubborn inflation.

All told, the S&P 500 slipped 0.44 to 6,114.63. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 165.35 points to 44,546.08, and the Nasdaq composite rose 81.13 to 20,026.77.

 

[bigdog]

U.S. stock markets will be closed on Monday, Feb. 17, in observance of the Presidents Day holiday, also known as Washington's Birthday.

Stock market today: Global benchmarks trade mixed as investors continue to eye Trump

Global shares are trading mixed as investors continue to watch economic data and policy moves from U.S.

apnews.com

Global benchmarks trade mixed as investors continue to eye Trump​

By YURI KAGEYAMA
Updated 7:55 PM GMT+11, February 17, 2025

TOKYO (AP) — Global shares traded mixed on Monday as investors continued to watch economic data and policy moves from U.S. President Donald Trump, as both are likely to impact upcoming central bank moves.

France’s CAC 40 dipped nearly 0.1% in early trading to 8,171.59, while Germany’s DAX added 0.4% to 22,560.00. Britain’s FTSE 100 edged up 0.1% to 8,742.97.

U.S. markets will be closed on Monday for a holiday.

In Asia, Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 rose in early trading after the Cabinet Office reported that the economy grew at a better-than-expected annual rate of 2.8% in October-December, underlined by steady exports and moderate consumption. But the benchmark quickly fell back and then recovered to be little changed, finishing up less than 0.1% at 39,174.25.

On a quarter-to-quarter basis, the world’s fourth-largest economy grew 0.7% for its third straight quarter of growth. Japan marked its fourth straight year of expansion, eking out 0.1% growth last year in seasonally adjusted real gross domestic product, which measures the value of a nation’s products and services.

In other regional markets, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.2% to 8,537.10. South Korea’s Kospi surged 0.8% to 2,610.42. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng reversed course, to slip less than 0.1% to 22,616.23, while the Shanghai Composite added 0.3% to 3,355.83.

Markets around the world are nervously watching what upward pressure may come from tariffs that Trump has announced recently. But analysts now think Trump may ultimately avoid triggering a punishing global trade war.

His most recent tariff announcement, for example, won’t take full effect for at least several weeks. That leaves time for Washington and other countries to negotiate.

The Federal Reserve’s goal, as well as that of the Bank of Japan, is to keep inflation at 2%.

In energy trading, benchmark U.S. crude added 28 cents to $71.02 a barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, rose 34 cents to $75.08 a barrel.

In currency trading, the U.S. dollar declined to 151.90 Japanese yen from 152.25 yen. The euro cost $1.0472, down from $1.0495.

U.S. markets will be closed on Monday for a holiday.