Morgans AM

US equity markets retreated, relinquishing earlier session gains and capping the worst 5-day start to a month for the Dow and S&P 500 since January 2016 - Dow fell -234-points or -0.60%,. Intel Corp fell -4.24% following a fresh broker downgrade (with analysts at Mizuho Securities cutting their recommendation to ‘Neutral’ from ‘Outperform’ and writing of “a tough road ahead to regain leadership”), extending the semiconductor company’s 5-day slide to -43.6%.

The broader S&P500 lost -0.77%, with Consumer Discretionary (-1.39%), Materials (-1.39%), Information Technology (-1.36%) and Health Care (-1.07%) all declining over >1% to lead seven of the eleven primary sectors lower. Super Micro Computer Inc tumbled -20.14% after the artificial intelligence (AI) server company – and a customer and close partner of Nvidia Corp (-5.12%) – reported its fiscal fourth-quarter result after the close of the previous session as the cost of transitioning to more expensive AI chips weighed on the bottom line.

US equity markets rebounded amid a broad-based recovery a day after the Dow and S&P 500 registered their sharpest daily losses since 13 September 2022 - Dow rose +294-points or +0.76%, clawing back some of the previous session’s -1,033.99-points or -2.6% tumble.
The broader S&P500 +1.04%, with Real Estate (up +2.3%) leading all eleven primary sectors higher.  Palantir Technologies Inc jumped +10.38% after reporting a better-than-expected second quarter result and lifted its full-year guidance on strong demand for its Artificial Intelligence Platform (AIP) after the close of the previous session. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd rallied +7.51% after JPMorgan analysts labelled the company  “best in class” among the cruise lines and raised their full year earnings per share (EPS) forecast to US$11.50 from US$11.43.

US equity markets extended their steep declines to cap their worst three-day performance since 2022, with the Dow and S&P 500 registering their sharpest daily losses since 13 September 2022 - Dow tumbled -1,033.99-points or -2.6% to 38,703.27, with all 30 components settling in the red. Intel Corp (down -6.38%) was the worst Dow performer overnight. Apple Inc (down -4.82%) continued to slide after Warren Buffett’s investment vehicle Berkshire Hathaway Inc (down -3.34%) halved its stake in the technology giant and boosted its cash pile to a record high of US$277M, according its second-quarter financial results released on Saturday (3 August),
Markets have become increasingly concerned following last Friday’s (2 August)  non-farm payrolls report for July that the Federal Reserve may be moving too slow when it comes to interest rate cuts if it wants to avoid a recession. Indeed, some analysts are now calling for ‘emergency’ rate cuts from the Federal Reserve. Also a lot of talk around the unwinding of the Yen carry trade triggered by the Bank of Japan's (BoJ) unexpected rate hike on Wednesday last week (31 July),

US equity markets tumbled for a second straight session after a weak jobs report further stocked fears of a recession – Dow fell -611-points or -1.51%. Intel Corp tumbled -26.06% after the chipmaker announced a wider-than-expected quarterly loss after the close of last Thursday’s (1 August) session and said it would lay off 15% of its staff as part of a massive cost-cutting effort. Amazon.com Inc -8.78% after the e-commerce giant reported weaker-than-anticipated quarterly revenue and issued soft guidance for the current quarter after the close of the previous session.


The broader S&P500 dropped -1.84% to 5,346.56, with 74% of index components settling in the red. The index settled 5.66% below its 16 July closing high (5,667.20). It marks the 29th correction of great than >5% off of a high since the March 2009 low.

US equity markets logged sharp declines amid a fresh sell off for the technology sector and following the release of some weak economic data - Dow fell -495-points or -1.21%, paring an earlier decline of ~744 points.
The broader S&P500 dropped -1.37%, with Information Technology falling -3.36% and handing back much of the previous session’s +3.95% rally.

Energy (down -2.56%) and Consumer Discretionary (-2.25%) both fell over >2% to be among six of the eleven primary sectors that settled in the red.

The more defensive Utilities (up +1.85%) and Real Estate (+1.58%) sectors sat atop the primary sector leaderboard overnight.
The Nasdaq -2.3%. Nvidia Corp fell -6.67%.

US equity markets retreated, with chip stocks under particular pressure ahead of earnings from a number of large capitalisation technology companies - Dow gained +203-points or +0.50%, with Travelers Companies Inc (up +3.03%), and investment banks Goldman Sachs Group Inc (+2.63%) and JPMorgan Chase & Co (+2.06%) leading the 30-stock index’s advance.

US equity markets settled little changed ahead of a defining week that sees 171 S&P 500 companies post second quarter results (including ten (10) Dow components and four (4) of the so-called ‘Magnificent Seven’ of large capitalisation technology stocks) along with key global central bank meetings and the latest Non Farm payrolls report - Dow slipped -49-points or -0.12%, with Caterpillar Inc (down -1.7%), Intel Corp (-1.66%), 3M Co (-1.57%) and Salesforce Inc (-1.57%) all falling over >1.5%.

US equity markets soared on Friday (26 July) to cap a turbulent week, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq snapping three session losing streaks as the technology sector recovered, corporate earnings news provided a big boost to several companies and inflation data reinforced expectations that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates soon - Dow rallied +654-points or +1.64%, American Express Co (up +2.38%), with Travelers Companies Inc (+2.21%), Salesforce Inc (+2.%) and Visa Inc (+2.35%) all rising over >2%The broader S&P500 gained +1.11%, with Industrials (up +1.72%), Materials (+1.68%), Real Estate (+1.67%) and Financials (+1.49%) leading all eleven primary sectors higher.

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite retreated for a third straight session amid a fresh rotation out of large cap technology into small capitalisation and value stocks - Dow added +81-points or +0.20% but settled well off its session highs. International Business Machines (IBM) Corp climbed +4.33% and was the leading performer in the 30-stock index. Boeing Co (up +2.38%), Caterpillar Inc (+2.46%) and Salesforce Inc (+2.7%) all rallied over >2%. Microsoft Corp shed -2.45%.

US equity markets settled with modest declines as investors digested a busy corporate earnings calendar and eyed second quarter results from the first of the so-called “Magnificent Seven” of large capitalisation technology stocks after the closing bell - Dow slipped -57-points or -0.14%. Walt Disney Co (down -.39%) was the worst performer in the 30-stock index, while McDonald’s Corp (-2.12%), Nike Inc (-1.95%) and Chevron Corp (-1.85%) were also notable underperformers. Boeing Co (up +4.24%) was the best performing Dow component overnight after receiving an additional airplane order from Qatar Airways.