Discussion on global economy and financial markets - Page 50

Mortgage rates in the US

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/mortgage-rates-down-lowest-since-april-2023-jobs-report/

The Magnificent Seven suffered $650B wipeout during Monday's market plunge.

Apple, Tesla, Alphabet and Amazon each dropped more than 4%, while Nvidia tumbled 7%, and Microsoft and Meta Platforms fell 3%.

Fed will fix it!

https://fortune.com/2024/08/05/market-jobs-prices-stability-fed-will-fix-austan-goolsbee/

The Dow closed more than 1,000 points lower and the other major U.S. stock indexes declined sharply today amid worries about slowing U.S. economic growth.

Chip stocks were among those trading sharply lower as investors curbed their expectations for how soon the artificial intelligence boom will pay off.

What had been growing scrutiny on the Federal Reserve morphed into broad-based criticism that the central bank has been too slow to cut interest rates.

While the most recent jobs report caused some market commentators to argue the Federal Reserve should have cut rates sooner — it held them steady again at 5.5% last week as it sought to further dampen inflation — other analysts pushed back on that idea.

Originally posted by: NerdyMukta

The Dow closed more than 1,000 points lower and the other major U.S. stock indexes declined sharply today amid worries about slowing U.S. economic growth.

Chip stocks were among those trading sharply lower as investors curbed their expectations for how soon the artificial intelligence boom will pay off.

What had been growing scrutiny on the Federal Reserve morphed into broad-based criticism that the central bank has been too slow to cut interest rates.

While the most recent jobs report caused some market commentators to argue the Federal Reserve should have cut rates sooner — it held them steady again at 5.5% last week as it sought to further dampen inflation — other analysts pushed back on that idea.

Wall Street ends a wild week by almost wiping out losses

Wall Street mounted a major comeback at the closing bell, culminating in a win on Friday and a turn-around that nearly wiped away Monday's heavy losses.

The S&P 500 rose close to 0.5%, while the Nasdaq Composite increased 0.5%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.1% or about 50 points.

Traders poured back in after Monday saw the worst rout of the year, and Wall Street's "fear gauge," the CBOE Volatility Index, soared to its highest levels since the throes of the pandemic. But encouraging labor data and reassurances from analysts and economists helped to level-set the panicked mood.

All three major indexes closed the week in the red, but the S&P and the Nasdaq were down less than one-quarter of a percentage point.

A look at the week ahead

A week of tremendous volatility and a dose of panic has come to a close. And the days ahead could help calm Wall Street's collective nerves.

A major inflation reading is on the economic calendar with July's Consumer Price Index set to be published on Wednesday.

The fresh data will come at a pivotal moment for the Fed. Officials have suggested a rate cut could arrive as soon as September, as long as new inflation readings continue to show progress in tamping down price pressures. Wall Street traders widely expect central bankers to begin lowering rates at the next policy meeting. A favorable report would cement those expectations and offer officials greater confidence to start the easing cycle.

Jobless claims on Thursday will also carry greater significance. After Monday's brutal sell-off, traders are still looking for reassurances of economic resilience. A consumer sentiment survey on Friday will give new insight into the public's expectations on inflation and the direction of the economy.

On the corporate front, major retailers Home Depot and Walmart as well as UBS and Cisco are scheduled to report earnings on Wednesday.

Dow Jones up sharply on Tuesday afternoon after release of inflation data

Major indexes were sharply higher Tuesday afternoon as inflation data came in better than expected, reinforcing expectations that the Federal Reserve will start cutting interest rates soon. Tech stocks, which have been on a volatile ride lately, were leading the move higher.

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite were up 1.4% and 2.1%, respectively, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.8%. On Monday, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq closed slightly higher, extending their winning streaks to three straight sessions, as markets stabilized following a volatile stretch sparked by mounting concerns about the health of the U.S. economy.

The Producer Price Index report released early Tuesday showed further progress on wholesale inflation, which is often viewed as a leading indicator for consumer prices. The consumer price inflation report comes Wednesday, followed by data on retail sales and housing later in the week. Several Fed officials are also slated to speak in the coming days.

The economic data is being closely monitored by the Fed as it considers when to start cutting rates that are at a two-decade high. Fed Chair Jerome Powell has said the central bank could start cutting its benchmark lending rate as soon as September if inflation continues to moderate.

The yield on 10-year Treasury was at 3.86%, slipping below 3.9% Tuesday for the first time since last Wednesday.

Starbucks (SBUX) was the big mover Tuesday, soaring more than 20% after the company announced that Chipotle (CMG) Chief Executive Officer Brian Niccol would be joining the coffee chain as CEO. Chipotle shares tumbled more than 7%.

Shares of large-cap tech stock were gaining ground, with Nvidia (NVDA) up nearly 6% while Apple (AAPL), Microsoft (MSFT), Amazon (AMZN), Alphabet (GOOGL) and Meta Platforms (META) were also on the rise. The iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX) was up 3.5%.

Home Depot (HD), a Dow component, was up 1.2% after reporting quarterly results that topped analysts' expectations, though the home improvement retailer said its 2024 comparable sales would decline more than it had previously forecast.

Gold futures were up slightly at around $2,510 per ounce, nearing fresh record highs, while bitcoin rose to above $61,000.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/elon-musk-donald-trump-and-x-why-tesla-investors-are-in-a-quagmire-131046601.html

This is quite surprising.