US close: Stocks slide as traders book post-Powell profits
By Josh White
Date: Thursday 01 Dec 2022
(Sharecast News) - Wall Street stocks were mostly lower at the close on Thursday, having surged in the previous session after Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell suggested a slowdown in the pace of rate hikes was on the horizon.
At the end of trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.56% at 34,395.01 and the S&P 500 was off 0.09% at 4,076.57, while the Nasdaq Composite managed gains of 0.13% to 11,482.45.
The Dow closed 194.76 points lower, taking a bite out of the serious gains it recorded on Wednesday after Powell's remarks.
"US markets initially opened higher after the latest core PCE inflation numbers showed that inflation continued to moderate in October, while weekly jobless claims fell to 225,000," said CMC Markets chief market analyst Michael Hewson.
"While these gains appear to have given way to some profit taking, the underlying narrative of a softer inflation and growth outlook appears to be being supported by this afternoon's US data.
"This combination of softer inflation as core prices rose by 0.2% in October, and 5% year-on-year, shows that the Fed doesn't need to be any more aggressive than it already has hinted it will be, pushing the dollar lower in the aftermath of Fed chair Powell's comments yesterday."
A series of data points were in focus earlier in the session, with market participants digesting news that Americans wage and salary growth had accelerated in October, supporting faster consumption.
According to the Department of Commerce, personal incomes grew at a month-on-month pace of 0.7% in October.
In parallel, personal consumption expenditures were up by 0.8% month-on-month.
Elsewhere, unemployment claims in the US slipped over the latest week.
According to the Department of Labor, in seasonally adjusted terms, initial jobless claims fell by 16,000 to 225,000 over the week ending on 26 November.
Economists at Barclays had forecast an increase to 245,000.
On another note, S&P Global's manufacturing PMI was revised slightly higher for November, coming in at 47.7, up from a preliminary reading of 47.6, but still pointed to the first contraction in factory activity since June 2020.
Still on data, the Institute for Supply Management's manufacturing purchasing manufacturers index fell into correction territory, declining to 49 in November, down from 50.2 in October and pointing to the first contraction in factory activity since May 2020.
Finally, construction spending in the US decreased 0.30% month-on-month in October, according to the Census Bureau.
In equities, retailers were in focus with Dollar General tumbling 7.56%, after the rural and suburban-focussed discount general store operator posted a miss on third-quarter earnings and cut its full-year forecast, citing higher costs.
Membership warehouse giant Costco was 5.13% weaker after it reported a 5.7% rise in sales for November, compared to growth of 7.7% in October, while America's largest grocer Kroger was 1.59% lower despite better-than-expected third-quarter earnings and a guidance hike.
On the upside, cinema operator AMC Entertainment jumped 13% after a volatility halt in trading at lunchtime.
AMC had announced plans to make about a fifth of its staff redundant on Tuesday, while chief executive officer Christina Spade was set to depart the firm after less than three months in the post.
Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com. Additional reporting by Iain Gilbert.
Dow Jones - Risers
Nike Inc. (NKE) $111.15 1.29%
Home Depot Inc. (HD) $327.07 0.95%
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $98.59 0.74%
Walmart Inc. (WMT) $153.37 0.62%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $49.97 0.50%
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $178.74 0.42%
Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $63.81 0.28%
McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $273.41 0.22%
Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) $51.10 0.20%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $148.31 0.19%
Dow Jones - Fallers
Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $147.00 -8.27%
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $536.60 -1.98%
Boeing Co. (BA) $175.78 -1.73%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $38.33 -1.67%
JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $136.24 -1.40%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $29.83 -0.80%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $383.88 -0.61%
Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $41.31 -0.46%
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $182.49 -0.45%
Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $189.08 -0.35%
S&P 500 - Risers
PVH Corp. (PVH) $73.57 9.44%
Synopsys Inc. (SNPS) $357.84 5.39%
Teleflex Inc. (TFX) $244.80 4.56%
Fortinet Inc. (FTNT) $55.38 4.18%
DENTSPLY Sirona Inc. (XRAY) $31.44 3.90%
Netflix Inc. (NFLX) $316.95 3.74%
Gen Digital Inc. (GEN) $23.76 3.48%
Cooper Cos Inc. (COO) $326.62 3.25%
Idexx Laboratories Inc. (IDXX) $439.17 3.12%
Stryker Corp. (SYK) $240.84 2.94%
S&P 500 - Fallers
Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $147.00 -8.27%
Dollar General Corp (DG) $236.34 -7.56%
Baxter International Inc. (BAX) $52.38 -7.34%
Costco Wholesale Corp. (COST) $503.86 -6.56%
Archer-Daniels-Midland Co. (ADM) $91.32 -6.34%
Nordstrom Inc. (JWN) $20.00 -4.63%
Synchrony Financial (SYF) $35.96 -4.36%
Mosaic Company (MOS) $49.10 -4.29%
CF Industries Holdings Inc. (CF) $103.64 -4.21%
Capital One Financial Corp. (COF) $99.32 -3.80%
Nasdaq 100 - Risers
Synopsys Inc. (SNPS) $357.84 5.39%
DENTSPLY Sirona Inc. (XRAY) $31.44 3.90%
Netflix Inc. (NFLX) $316.95 3.74%
Gen Digital Inc. (GEN) $23.76 3.48%
Idexx Laboratories Inc. (IDXX) $439.17 3.12%
Cadence Design Systems Inc. (CDNS) $176.78 2.76%
Align Technology Inc. (ALGN) $201.77 2.60%
Henry Schein Inc. (HSIC) $82.98 2.51%
Autodesk Inc. (ADSK) $206.90 2.47%
Intuit Inc. (INTU) $416.07 2.08%
Nasdaq 100 - Fallers
Costco Wholesale Corp. (COST) $503.86 -6.56%
NetEase Inc. Ads (NTES) $68.25 -4.04%
Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $55.49 -3.75%
American Airlines Group (AAL) $13.98 -3.12%
Dish Network Corp. (DISH) $15.59 -2.87%
Western Digital Corp. (WDC) $35.84 -2.48%
Applied Materials Inc. (AMAT) $107.01 -2.36%
JD.com, Inc. (JD) $55.85 -2.33%
Lam Research Corp. (LRCX) $463.14 -1.96%
Texas Instruments Inc (TXN) $177.50 -1.64%
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