3 weeks ago
9
All three major US stock indexes lost ground, with technology shares leading the decline. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.43 per cent to 40,712, the S&P 500 slipped 0.89 per cent to 5,570, and the Nasdaq Composite fell 1.67 per cent to 17,619. read more
 "Wall Street indices tumble ahead of Fed chair's Jackson Hole speech")
Wall Street investors adopted a cautious stance ahead of the anticipated Jackson Hole event. AP
Stocks fell on Thursday, 22nd August, as investors digested fresh economic data and awaited confirmation from the US Federal Reserve on its anticipated interest rate cuts. The announcement, expected on Friday, 23rd August, has fuelled speculation that the Fed will soon begin reducing rates.
All three major US stock indexes lost ground, with technology shares leading the decline. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.43 per cent to 40,712, the S&P 500 slipped 0.89 per cent to 5,570, and the Nasdaq Composite fell 1.67 per cent to 17,619.
Market mover
Nvidia, the biggest drag on the S&P 500, erased early gains and ended the day down 3.7 per cent ahead of its highly anticipated profit report due next week.
Advance Auto Parts plummeted 17.5 per cent after its quarterly profit missed Wall Street’s expectations. The company cited a “challenging demand environment” and slashed its full-year profit forecast well below analysts’ predictions.
Also on the losing side was Snowflake, which declined 14.7 per cent despite surpassing analysts’ estimates for profit and revenue in the latest quarter. The company’s forecast for product revenue in the current quarter fell short of what analysts had been expecting.
Williams-Sonoma tumbled 9.3 per cent after trimming its full-year revenue outlook, with sales now expected to decrease between 1.5 per cent and 4 per cent.
Meanwhile, Peloton, the internet-connected exercise company, soared 35.4 per cent after surpassing sales forecasts and reporting a smaller-than-expected loss in the latest quarter.
Zoom Video Communications, another pandemic-era winner that has faced challenges in its post-pandemic phase, also saw gains. The stock climbed 13 per cent after delivering better-than-expected profit and revenue for the latest quarter.
Focus on Jackson Hole
The Federal Reserve has raised its main interest rate to its highest level in more than two decades in an effort to slow the economy enough to curb inflation without triggering a recession. With inflation showing signs of easing, there is widespread expectation that the Fed will cut interest rates at its next meeting in September, marking the first easing since the COVID-19 crash in 2020.
As a result, all eyes are on Jackson Hole, Wyoming, where Fed Chair Jerome Powell is scheduled to speak on Friday at an economic symposium that has previously been the stage for significant Fed policy announcements. Investors are hoping Powell will provide clues on the pace and extent of potential rate cuts to help ease economic conditions.
With inputs from agencies
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
English (US) ·