Wall Street’s recent rally lost steam on Wednesday following two potentially discouraging economic reports. The S&P 500 finished the day unchanged, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.2%. Treasury yields tumbled in response to the weaker-than-expected data.
The first report showed that US retailers and finance companies experienced contraction last month, defying economists’ expectations of growth. Another report from ADP suggested that employers hired far fewer workers than expected, which could impact Friday’s jobs report.
Despite this, some stocks rallied due to lower interest rates. Homebuilders like D.R. Horton and PulteGroup rose over 3%, benefiting from lower mortgage rates. However, cybersecurity company CrowdStrike fell 5.8% after reporting a stronger profit but missing revenue targets.
Global markets showed signs of recovery, with indexes in Europe and Asia rising as traders await updates on trade talks. US President Donald Trump expressed optimism about the negotiations, saying he likes China’s leader Xi Jinping and is open to making deals.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.35% from 4.46% late Tuesday, while investors continue to demand higher interest payments due to concerns over debt. The Federal Reserve has yet to cut interest rates this year, but some traders believe it may be necessary to boost the economy.
Source: https://apnews.com/article/stocks-markets-tariffs-trump-steel-cfaa9c8adc0658ae9a2759c56dc2bde2