Written by Investing.com Staff, Investing.com
U.S. stocks mixed at close of trade; Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.16%
U.S. stocks were mixed after the close on Friday, as gains in the Basic Materials, Telecoms and Industrials sectors led shares higher while losses in the Consumer Services, Consumer Goods and Technology sectors led shares lower.
At the close in NYSE, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.16%, while the S&P 500 index gained 0.06%, and the NASDAQ Composite index lost 0.13%.
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The best performers of the session on the Dow Jones Industrial Average were Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc (NASDAQ:WBA), which rose 1.57% or 0.79 points to trade at 51.19 at the close. Meanwhile, UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) added 1.47% or 3.38 points to end at 234.00 and Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC) was up 1.15% or 0.54 points to 47.41 in late trade.
The worst performers of the session were Cisco Systems Inc (NASDAQ:CSCO), which fell 1.03% or 0.48 points to trade at 46.78 at the close. Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) declined 0.78% or 0.95 points to end at 120.23 and Nike Inc (NYSE:NKE) was down 0.78% or 0.66 points to 84.50.
The top performers on the S&P 500 were Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC) which rose 3.98% to 57.27, Dollar Tree Inc (NASDAQ:DLTR) which was up 3.95% to settle at 101.53 and Campbell Soup Company (NYSE:CPB) which gained 3.90% to close at 45.00.
The worst performers were Ulta Beauty Inc (NASDAQ:ULTA) which was down 29.55% to 237.73 in late trade, Alexion Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:ALXN) which lost 10.17% to settle at 100.76 and Cooper Companies Inc (NYSE:COO) which was down 5.73% to 309.75 at the close.
The top performers on the NASDAQ Composite were Eltek Ltd (NASDAQ:ELTK) which rose 52.63% to 6.380, Jason Industries Inc (NASDAQ:JASN) which was up 29.40% to settle at 0.505 and SeaChange International Inc (NASDAQ:SEAC) which gained 20.21% to close at 2.32.
The worst performers were Afya Ltd (NASDAQ:AFYA) which was down 30.23% to 21.90 in late trade, Ulta Beauty Inc (NASDAQ:ULTA) which lost 29.55% to settle at 237.73 and Kelly Services B Inc (NASDAQ:KELYB) which was down 24.87% to 23.560 at the close.
Rising stocks outnumbered declining ones on the New York Stock Exchange by 1694 to 1226 and 126 ended unchanged; on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange, 1331 fell and 1308 advanced, while 101 ended unchanged.
Shares in Campbell Soup Company (NYSE:CPB) rose to 52-week highs; up 3.90% or 1.69 to 45.00. Shares in Afya Ltd (NASDAQ:AFYA) fell to all time lows; falling 30.23% or 9.49 to 21.90. Shares in SeaChange International Inc (NASDAQ:SEAC) rose to 52-week highs; rising 20.21% or 0.39 to 2.32.
The CBOE Volatility Index, which measures the implied volatility of S&P 500 options, was up 6.15% to 18.98.
Gold Futures for December delivery was down 0.50% or 7.75 to $1529.15 a troy ounce. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Crude oil for delivery in October fell 2.73% or 1.55 to hit $55.16 a barrel, while the November Brent oil contract fell 2.33% or 1.41 to trade at $59.08 a barrel.
EUR/USD was down 0.58% to 1.0991, while USD/JPY fell 0.20% to 106.28.
The US Dollar Index Futures was up 0.31% at 98.763.
See also:
Canada stocks higher at close of trade; S&P/TSX Composite up 0.35%
U.K. stocks higher at close of trade; Investing.com United Kingdom 100 up 0.30%
Stocks – Wall Street Takes Pre-Holiday Breather; Ulta Shares Crash
The U.S. dollar fell Friday after consumer sentiment declined to its lowest level since October 2016 as U.S.-China tariff concerns hit domestic spending.
The University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment for August came in at 89.8, which was below expectations for a reading of 92.3. The lower final reading was mainly due to tariff concerns, said Richard Curtin, chief economist in charge of the survey. Curtin said:
“Unlike the repeated tariff reversals, negative trends in consumer sentiment cannot be easily reversed.”
Large moves between the preliminary and final Michigan sentiment numbers for one month are unusual.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a basket of six major currencies, was at 98.442 as of 10:40 AM ET (14:40 GMT), not far from an earlier low of 98.380.
The Japanese yen, which is seen as a safe haven in times of market turmoil, rose, with USD/JPY falling 0.3% to 106.15.
Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump lamented the euro falling against the dollar as he once again criticized the Federal Reserve for not cutting rates as much as he would like. Trump tweeted:
“The Euro is dropping against the Dollar “like crazy,” giving them a big export and manufacturing advantage…and the Fed does NOTHING!”
See also:
- Forex: Dollar Close to 1-Month High; Forint Steady Near All-Time Low
- Euro Falls to Two-Year Low Amid Trade Concerns, Trump Ire (Bloomberg)
Gold prices were little changed on Friday, after a modest boost from U.S. inflation data failed to revive a rally driven by last week’s escalations of the U.S.-China trade war.
Gold futures for December delivery on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, rose $1.15, or 0.1%, to $1,538.05 a troy ounce by 9:15 AM ET (13:15 GMT).
The precious metal pulled away from the flat line after the Fed’s preferred inflation indicator, the core PCE price index, rose less than expected in July.
Subdued inflation has been one of the key factors mentioned by the Federal Reserve as justification for a looser stance on monetary policy.
Markets continue to price in an additional 25 basis point cut at the next policy decision in September.
Lower interest rates tend to support gold by reducing the yield on bonds, which compete for the capital of risk-averse investors.
Gold was on track for a rise of nearly 7% for the month, due largely to the U.S. and China escalating their tariff war throughout August. However, it was noticeably flat for the last week as tit-for-tat retaliations dried up and the rhetoric from both sides became vaguer. Chinese officials said on Friday merely that negotiators on both sides were “maintaining effective communication.“
Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank, said the rally had paused not only because of trade developments, but also due to technical factors in the foreign exchange market, where the dollar hit a one-month high earlier Friday, and to investors seeking relative value in silver and platinum.
Silver futures, which were slow to follow gold higher earlier this year, have risen over 17% this month. They gained 1.0% to $18.512 a troy ounce by 9:17 AM ET (13:17 GMT).
Palladium futures traded up 3.8% to $1,527.80 an ounce, while sister metal platinumrose 2.0% to $938.00.
In base metals, copper advanced 0.1% to $2.581 a pound.
See also:
- Gold Prices Down as Global Stocks Recover on Easing Trade Jitters
Gold Prices Back Off on U.S. Markets (ETF Daily)
Oil prices were mixed on Friday in Asia as the Sino-U.S. trade war has seemingly taken an unexpected turn for the better.
U.S. Crude Oil WTI Futures slipped 0.1% to $56.66 by 12:00 AM ET (04:00 GMT). International Brent Oil Futures gained 0.2% to $60.59.
Investor sentiment improved today after the Chinese Ministry of Commerce said it is willing to “negotiate and collaborate” with the U.S. on trade matters, and that it will not retaliate against the latest tariffs imposed by the U.S. for now.
U.S. President Donald Trump, meanwhile, said talks at a “different level” were set for Thursday.
Trump said in an interview with Fox News Radio (without elaborating on what “a different level” means):
“There’s a talk scheduled for today at a different level.”
The conciliatory tone from China was unexpected, as many previously feared Beijing would seek to retaliate against the latest round of U.S. tariffs announced by Trump last week.
Oil prices are now set to record their strongest week since early July largely thanks to a bigger-than-expected fall in U.S. inventories reported earlier in the week.
Meanwhile, Hurricane Dorian that is currently approaching Florida sparked concerns that offshore U.S. crude producers may slow output.
The Hurricane is expected to head toward Florida over the weekend and may enter into the eastern Gulf of Mexico next week, according to the National Hurricane Center.
See also:
- Oil Rises as Trade Jitters Ease
- Oil prices fall but set for big weekly gain as trade dispute rhetoric eases (Reuters)
Natural Gas
No report this week.
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