Latest news with #AXSInvestments
Time of India
7 hours ago
- Business
- Time of India
Wall St ends sharply higher, S&P 500 nears record high as Middle East tensions cool
U.S. stocks rallied more than 1% on Tuesday as investors welcomed a fragile truce with Israel and Iran while parsing Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's congressional testimony for clues regarding the U.S. central bank's path forward. All three major U.S. stock indexes closed with their second straight session of solid gains following U.S. missile strikes on Iran's uranium enrichment assets. The Nasdaq 100 , a subset of the Nasdaq Composite, nabbed an all-time closing high, while the benchmark S&P 500 closed within striking distance of its all-time closing high reached on February 19. Late Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump announced a cease-fire agreement, which Israel appeared to have violated. Still, investors viewed the cease-fire rhetoric as a sign of de-escalating tensions. "The bulls are out of their bucking shoots," said Greg Bassuk, chief executive officer at AXS Investments in New York. "The cease-fire really is adding fire to the stock market rally . We believe investors are wagering that calm in the Middle East is really a boon for stocks even as it weighs down bonds and oil prices." Live Events Crude prices slid on waning supply concerns related to the conflict, dragging energy shares lower. Powell, speaking before the U.S. House of Representatives Financial Services Committee, reiterated his view that rate cuts can wait until the economic effects of tariff increases are better known, adding "we are well positioned to wait to learn more about the likely course of the economy before considering any adjustments to our policy stance." Financial markets have been pricing in a more than 20% likelihood that the Fed will lower its key interest rate at the conclusion of its July policy meeting, and a near 70% probability that its first rate cut will land in September. On the economic front, consumer confidence deteriorated this month, with pessimism toward the jobs market falling to its lowest level since March 2021. "Consumer confidence was down," Bassuk added. "And as we see these economic data points casting a shadow over the strength of the U.S. economy, it's another factor pointing toward greater likelihood of Fed rate cuts this year." The Commerce Department is expected to release its final take on first-quarter GDP on Thursday, and on Friday its closely watched Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) report will shed light on inflation, consumer spending and income growth. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 507.24 points, or 1.19%, to 43,089.02, the S&P 500 gained 67.01 points, or 1.11%, to 6,092.18 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 281.56 points, or 1.43%, to 19,912.53. Of the 11 major sectors of the S&P 500, tech shares led the gainers, while energy stocks fared the worst, dropping 1.5%. Among the "magnificent 7" group of megacap stocks, Tesla underperformed, dropping 2.4%. Airline stocks gained altitude amid cooling Middle East tensions . The S&P 1500 Airlines index advanced 2.4%. But defense stocks lost ground. Lockheed Martin dipped 2.6% and RTX Corp fell 2.7%. Shares of crypto companies rose after bitcoin hit a one-week high. Coinbase Global and Microstrategy advanced 12.1% and 2.7% respectively. Broadcom touched a record high, after HSBC raised the semiconductor manufacturer to "buy" from "hold". The stock rose 3.9%. Package deliverer FedEx dropped more than 4% in extended trading after reporting quarterly results. Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 3.27-to-1 ratio on the NYSE. There were 239 new highs and 56 new lows on the NYSE. On the Nasdaq, 3,423 stocks rose and 1,046 fell as advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 3.27-to-1 ratio. The S&P 500 posted 19 new 52-week highs and no new lows. The Nasdaq Composite recorded 115 new highs and 59 new lows. Volume on U.S. exchanges was 16.94 billion shares, compared with the 18.12 billion average for the full session over the last 20 trading days.
CNA
12 hours ago
- Business
- CNA
Wall St ends sharply higher, S&P 500 nears record high as Middle East tensions cool
NEW YORK: US stocks rallied more than 1 per cent on Tuesday (Jun 24) as investors welcomed a fragile truce with Israel and Iran while parsing Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's congressional testimony for clues regarding the US central bank's path forward. All three major US stock indexes closed with their second straight session of solid gains following US missile strikes on Iran's uranium enrichment assets. The benchmark S&P 500 grew within striking distance of its all-time closing high reached on Feb 19. Late Monday, US President Donald Trump announced a cease-fire agreement, which Israel appeared to have violated. Still, investors viewed the cease-fire rhetoric as a sign of de-escalating tensions. "The bulls are out of their bucking shoots," said Greg Bassuk, Chief Executive Officer at AXS Investments in New York. "The cease-fire really adding fire to the stock market rally. We believe investors are wagering that calm in the Middle East is really a boon for stocks even as it weighs down bonds and oil prices." Crude prices slid on waning supply concerns related to the conflict, dragging energy shares lower. Powell, speaking before the US House of Representatives Financial Services Committee, reiterated his view that rate cuts can wait until the economic effects of tariff increases are better known, adding "we are well positioned to wait to learn more about the likely course of the economy before considering any adjustments to our policy stance." Financial markets have been pricing in a more than 20 per cent likelihood that the Fed will lower its key interest rate at the conclusion of its July policy meeting, and a near 70 per cent probability that its first rate cut will land in September. On the economic front, consumer confidence deteriorated this month, with pessimism toward the jobs market falling to its lowest level since March 2021. "Consumer confidence was down," Bassuk added. "And as we see these economic data points casting a shadow over the strength of the U.S. economy, it's another factor pointing toward greater likelihood of Fed rate cuts this year." The Commerce Department is expected to release its final take on first-quarter GDP on Thursday, and on Friday its closely watched Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) report will shed light on inflation, consumer spending and income growth. According to preliminary data, the S&P 500 .SPX gained 67.34 points, or 1.12 per cent, to end at 6,092.51 points, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 283.62 points, or 1.45 per cent, to 19,914.59. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 510.19 points, or 1.20 per cent, to 43,091.97.
West Australian
27-04-2025
- Business
- West Australian
Wall St posts weekly gains, focus on tariffs, earnings
Wall Street has advanced, notching weekly gains as investors parsed a spate of earnings and looked for signs of easing tensions in the US-China trade dispute. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq were bolstered by gains in the "magnificent seven" group of artificial intelligence-related megacaps, while the blue-chip Dow was more muted. The small cap Russell 2000 enjoyed its largest weekly percentage gain since November. Beijing exempted some US imports from its 125 per cent tariffs but denied Trump's negotiation claims, on the heels of recent de-escalating statements from Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, in the latest sign that the world's two largest economies are dialing back their trade war tensions, which have rattled markets for weeks. "We're looking at a nice finish to what was a pretty strong week," said Greg Bassuk, CEO at AXS Investments in New York. "The week kicked off with a strong sell sentiment but a real robust rebound followed. It's been a pretty strong week and it's largely been sparked by a sense of de-escalation of both the trade war with China." First-quarter earnings season has hit full-stride, with 179 of the companies in the S&P 500 having reported. Of those, 73 per cent have beaten expectations, according to LSEG. Analysts now see aggregate S&P 500 earnings for the January to March period of 9.7 per cent year-on-year, sunnier than the eight per cent estimate as it stood on April 1, per LSEG. But investors are largely looking past results and parsing forward guidance, particularly lowered or pulled projections due to economic uncertainties and dampening consumer spending. The University of Michigan released its final take on April consumer sentiment, and while the index was upwardly revised, it was still at the lowest level since July 2022 and inflation expectations remained hot. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 20.10 points, or 0.05 per cent, to 40,113.50, the S&P 500 gained 40.44 points, or 0.74 per cent, to 5,525.21 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 216.90 points, or 1.26 per cent, to 17,382.94. Of the 11 major sectors in the S&P 500, consumer discretionary and tech led the gainers, while materials suffered the largest percentage loss. Alphabet shares advanced 1.7 per cent after the Google parent posted a 28 per cent jump in Google Cloud revenue and assured investors that its AI investments are paying off. Intel provided weak revenue and profit forecasts, sending the chipmaker's stock down 6.7 per cent. Shares of oilfield services provider SLB dipped 1.2 per cent after the company missed first-quarter profit estimates and warned of a potential industry-wide shift due to economic uncertainty and tariff risks. Charter Communications jumped 11.4 per cent after the broadband and cable company beat revenue estimates and added more subscribers than expected. Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.33-to-1 ratio on the NYSE. There were 54 new highs and 27 new lows on the NYSE. On the Nasdaq, 2,317 stocks rose and 2,024 fell as advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.14-to-1 ratio. The S&P 500 posted four new 52-week highs and six new lows while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 32 new highs and 47 new lows. Volume on US exchanges was 14.30 billion shares, compared with the 19.13 billion average for the full session over the last 20 trading days.
Yahoo
22-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Wall Street ends sharply lower on mounting concerns over economy, tariffs
By Stephen Culp NEW YORK (Reuters) -U.S. stocks tumbled on Friday, extending their selloff in the wake of dour economic reports and closing the book on a holiday-shortened week fraught with new tariff threats and worries of softening consumer demand. All three major U.S. stock indexes moved decisively lower on the heels of the data, and continued their slide into afternoon trading. The S&P 500 suffered its largest single-day percentage drop since December 18, as did the small cap Russell 2000. For the week, all three indexes lost ground, with the Dow registering its steepest Friday-to-Friday plunge since mid-October. "I don't like all this red on a Friday," said Greg Bassuk, CEO at AXS Investments in New York. "We're seeing consumer sentiment, tariffs and corporate earnings having leap-frogged AI and technology as the primary drivers of market direction." Economic data showed U.S. business activity decelerating and consumer sentiment deteriorating, with survey participants expressing an increasingly gloomy outlook in the face of economic unknowns. The data comes on the heels of Walmart's disappointing guidance on Thursday, which sparked fears of dampening consumer demand. U.S. businesses' optimism has "evaporated," according to PMI commentary provided by S&P Global's chief economist Chris Williamson, amid "a darkening picture of heightened uncertainty." "Uncertainty is the new investor narrative," Bassuk added. "It's sparking the volatility that we've seen this week." "We're anticipating that the uncertainty and the volatility is going to remain at least through the end of this first quarter." Economically sensitive sectors, such as Dow Transports, chips, smallcaps, housing, and consumer discretionary slid more than 2%. Megacap momentum stocks dropped 2.9%, and every stock in the "Magnificent Seven" ended in negative territory, with Nvidia, due to report earnings next week, tumbling 4.1%. The CBOE volatility index closed at its highest level since February 3. This week, U.S. President Donald Trump said he will soon announce new tariffs covering lumber and forest products, in addition to previously announced plans to impose duties on imported cars, semiconductors and pharmaceuticals. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 748.63 points, or 1.69%, to 43,428.02, the S&P 500 lost 104.39 points, or 1.71%, to 6,013.13 and the Nasdaq Composite lost 438.36 points, or 2.20%, to 19,524.01. Among the 11 major sectors of the S&P 500, all but consumer staples ended lower, with consumer discretionary and tech suffering the steepest percentage losses. Fourth-quarter earnings season is in its final stretch. Some 425 of the companies in the S&P 500 have reported, with 76% of them beating Wall Street expectations, according to LSEG. Tesla and Rivian each dropped 4.7% after both electric vehicle makers announced recalls. Analysts now see aggregate fourth-quarter S&P 500 earnings growth of 15.7% year-on-year, a significant improvement over the 7.8% annual growth prediction as on January 1, per LSEG. Shares of UnitedHealth tumbled 7.2% following a Wall Street Journal report that the Department of Justice has launched an investigation into the health insurer's Medicare billing practices. Block tumbled 17.7% after the payment firm's fourth-quarter profit fell short of estimates. Akamai Technologies dropped 21.7% as the cybersecurity company forecast annual 2025 revenue below estimates. Declining issues outnumbered advancers by a 2.64-to-1 ratio on the NYSE. There were 102 new highs and 119 new lows on the NYSE. On the Nasdaq, 1,087 stocks rose and 3,301 fell as declining issues outnumbered advancers by a 3.04-to-1 ratio. The S&P 500 posted 19 new 52-week highs and 8 new lows while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 67 new highs and 135 new lows. Volume on U.S. exchanges was 17.06 billion shares, compared with the 15.30 billion average for the full session over the last 20 trading days. Sign in to access your portfolio
The Guardian
21-02-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
US stocks dip amid concerns over tariffs and consumer belt-tightening
US stocks tumbled on Friday, extending a sell-off in the wake of dour economic reports and closing the book on a holiday-shortened week fraught with new tariff threats and worries of softening consumer demand. All three major US stock indexes moved decisively lower on the heels of the data, and continued their slide into afternoon trading. The S&P 500 suffered its largest single-day percentage drop since 18 December, as did the small-cap Russell 2000. For the week, all three indexes lost ground, with the Dow registering its steepest Friday-to-Friday plunge since mid-October. 'I don't like all this red on a Friday,' said Greg Bassuk, CEO at AXS Investments in New York. 'We're seeing consumer sentiment, tariffs and corporate earnings having leap-frogged AI and technology as the primary drivers of market direction.' Economic data showed US business activity decelerating and consumer sentiment deteriorating, with survey participants expressing an increasingly gloomy outlook in the face of economic unknowns. The data comes on the heels of Walmart's disappointing guidance on Thursday, which sparked fears of dampening consumer demand. US businesses' optimism has 'evaporated', according to PMI commentary provided by S&P Global's chief business economist, Chris Williamson, amid 'a darkening picture of heightened uncertainty'. 'Uncertainty is the new investor narrative,' Bassuk of AXS Investments added. 'It's sparking the volatility that we've seen this week. 'We're anticipating that the uncertainty and the volatility is going to remain at least through the end of this first quarter.' Megacap momentum stocks dropped 2.9%, and every stock in the 'magnificent seven' ended in negative territory, with Nvidia, due to report earnings next week, tumbling 4.1%. Sign up to Headlines US Get the most important US headlines and highlights emailed direct to you every morning after newsletter promotion The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) volatility index closed at its highest level since 3 February. This week, Donald Trump said he will soon announce new tariffs covering lumber and forest products, on the heels of previously announced plans to impose duties on imported cars, semiconductors and pharmaceuticals. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 748.63 points, or 1.69%, to 43,428.02; the S&P 500 fell 104.39, or 1.71%, to 6,013.13; and the Nasdaq Composite fell 438.36, or 2.20%, to 19,524.01. Among the 11 major sectors of the S&P 500, all but consumer staples ended lower, with consumer discretionary and tech suffering the steepest percentage losses.
