US: Stocks mostly rise ahead of retail sales data
[NEW YORK] Wall Street stocks finished mostly higher on Wednesday following a choppy session as markets look ahead to key US retail sales and inflation data.
Analysts described the indecisive session as reflective of a quiet day for macroeconomic news after markets soared on Monday on a favourable US-China trade announcement before mostly extending those gains on Tuesday.
'Investors are just taking a little bit of a pause after yesterday's strong gains and we're waiting for tomorrow's macro news,' said Peter Cardillo of Spartan Capital Securities.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished down 0.2 per cent at 42,051.06.
The broad-based S&P 500 edged up 0.1 per cent to 5,892.58, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index gained 0.7 per cent to 19,146.81.
After stocks tumbled in early April following sweeping tariff actions announced by US President Donald Trump, the market has rebounded as Trump has retreated from many of the actions.
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Analysts have mixed views on whether the market could still go much higher.
Those perspectives were outlined in a note from CFRA Research's Sam Stovall, who concluded that, based on the breadth of recent stock market gains, 'CFRA sees additional upside ahead.'
Among individual companies, Boeing added 0.8 per cent after reaching a large airplane deal with Qatar Airways. Under a deal announced by Trump, Qatar Airways will acquire up to 210 Boeing 787 Dreamliner and 777X aircraft.
Markets are looking ahead to reports on Thursday on wholesale prices and retail sales for April, as well as earnings from retail behemoth Walmart. AFP
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Business Times
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Sign Up Sign Up President Donald Trump has twice delayed the ban – with legal assurances from his attorney general – and another deadline for divestiture looms later this month, though that might also be extended, the Wall Street Journal reported. ByteDance said during the Biden administration that it had no plan to sell TikTok, but in April the Beijing-based company confirmed that it had been in discussions with the Trump government regarding a potential solution for TikTok US. It said any agreement would be subject to approval under Chinese law. The TikTok Shop near Seattle in February began requiring workers to be in the office five days a week for eight hours a day, according to a memo reviewed by Bloomberg. The change is in contrast to some other major tech companies that still offer flexible work schedules, and has been particularly burdensome for employees who often join late-night calls with colleagues in Asia after they leave the office, according to former employees. 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Can US ports handle a freight spike or will they be overwhelmed?
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