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U.S. stock markets closed mixed on Friday as market participants remained concerned regarding China’s economic growth. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite ended in negative territory while the Dow managed to finish in green. However, these here stock indexes ended a disappointing last week.
How Did The Benchmarks Perform?
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) rose 0.1% to close at 34,500.66. Notably, 19 components of the 30-stock index ended in positive territory, while 11 in negative zone. The blue-chip index terminated a three-day losing streak.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite finished at 13,290.78, declining 0.2% due to weak performance of large-cap technology stocks. The tech-laden index recorded a four-day losing streak. The major loser of the tech-laden index was JD.com Inc. (JD - Free Report) . The stock price declined 4.8%. JD.com currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
The S&P 500 slid 0.1% to end at 4,369.71 after posting a four-day losing run. However, seven out of 11 broad sectors of the benchmark ended in positive territory, while four finished in red. The Energy Select Sector SPDR (XLE) rose 1%. On the other hand, the Communication Services Select Sector SPDR (XLC) fell 0.6%.
The fear-gauge CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) was down 3.3% to 17.30. A total of 10.6 billion shares were traded on Friday, lower than the last 20-session average of 11 billion. The S&P 500 posted no new 52-week highs and 17 new 52-week lows. The Nasdaq Composite registered 24 new 52-week highs and 225 new 52-week lows.
Concerns on China’s Economic Growth
China, the second-largest economy of the world, the facing serious challenges as it is still to recover from the aftershock of COVID-19. The country’s industrial production and retail sales grew less than expected in June.
China is facing deflation and its prosperous real estate sector is on the verge of collapse. In order to generate growth and gain investors’ confidence, the People’s Bank of China lowered interest rates by 15 basis points to 2.5% from 2.65%. However, it has failed to deliver so far.
On Aug 17, China’s heavily indebted property giant Evergrande Group filed for Chapter 15 bankruptcy protection in a U.S. court. Moreover, Country Garden, another real estate bigwig of China, struggled to make coupon payments on U.S. dollar-denominated bonds and issued a profit warning.
Q2 2023 Earnings Results Remain Resilient
As of Aug 18, 473 S&P 500 companies reported earnings results. Total earnings of these companies are down 8.5% year-over-year on 0.9% higher revenues. Of these, 79.5% surpassed EPS estimates while 65.8% outpaced revenue estimates.
At present, our estimate has shown that total earnings of the S&P 500 Index will likely decline 7.7% year-over-year on 0.9% higher revenues. The second-quarter earnings decline would follow the 3.4% decline in the first quarter and a 5.4% drop in fourth-quarter 2022.
Weekly Roundup
Last week was highly disappointing on Wall Street. The Dow lost 2.2%, it worst weekly performance since March. The S&P 500 fell 2.1%, marking its third-straight weekly losses, for the first time since February. The market’s benchmark’s three-week loss of 4.6% is its biggest such decline since the three weeks ended Mar 10. The Nasdaq Composite slid 2.6%, reflecting its third-straight weekly losses, for the first time since December. The tech-laden index’s three-week loss of 7.2% is its biggest such decline since late December.
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Stock Market News for Aug 21, 2023
U.S. stock markets closed mixed on Friday as market participants remained concerned regarding China’s economic growth. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite ended in negative territory while the Dow managed to finish in green. However, these here stock indexes ended a disappointing last week.
How Did The Benchmarks Perform?
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) rose 0.1% to close at 34,500.66. Notably, 19 components of the 30-stock index ended in positive territory, while 11 in negative zone. The blue-chip index terminated a three-day losing streak.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite finished at 13,290.78, declining 0.2% due to weak performance of large-cap technology stocks. The tech-laden index recorded a four-day losing streak. The major loser of the tech-laden index was JD.com Inc. (JD - Free Report) . The stock price declined 4.8%. JD.com currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
The S&P 500 slid 0.1% to end at 4,369.71 after posting a four-day losing run. However, seven out of 11 broad sectors of the benchmark ended in positive territory, while four finished in red. The Energy Select Sector SPDR (XLE) rose 1%. On the other hand, the Communication Services Select Sector SPDR (XLC) fell 0.6%.
The fear-gauge CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) was down 3.3% to 17.30. A total of 10.6 billion shares were traded on Friday, lower than the last 20-session average of 11 billion. The S&P 500 posted no new 52-week highs and 17 new 52-week lows. The Nasdaq Composite registered 24 new 52-week highs and 225 new 52-week lows.
Concerns on China’s Economic Growth
China, the second-largest economy of the world, the facing serious challenges as it is still to recover from the aftershock of COVID-19. The country’s industrial production and retail sales grew less than expected in June.
China is facing deflation and its prosperous real estate sector is on the verge of collapse. In order to generate growth and gain investors’ confidence, the People’s Bank of China lowered interest rates by 15 basis points to 2.5% from 2.65%. However, it has failed to deliver so far.
On Aug 17, China’s heavily indebted property giant Evergrande Group filed for Chapter 15 bankruptcy protection in a U.S. court. Moreover, Country Garden, another real estate bigwig of China, struggled to make coupon payments on U.S. dollar-denominated bonds and issued a profit warning.
Q2 2023 Earnings Results Remain Resilient
As of Aug 18, 473 S&P 500 companies reported earnings results. Total earnings of these companies are down 8.5% year-over-year on 0.9% higher revenues. Of these, 79.5% surpassed EPS estimates while 65.8% outpaced revenue estimates.
At present, our estimate has shown that total earnings of the S&P 500 Index will likely decline 7.7% year-over-year on 0.9% higher revenues. The second-quarter earnings decline would follow the 3.4% decline in the first quarter and a 5.4% drop in fourth-quarter 2022.
Weekly Roundup
Last week was highly disappointing on Wall Street. The Dow lost 2.2%, it worst weekly performance since March. The S&P 500 fell 2.1%, marking its third-straight weekly losses, for the first time since February. The market’s benchmark’s three-week loss of 4.6% is its biggest such decline since the three weeks ended Mar 10. The Nasdaq Composite slid 2.6%, reflecting its third-straight weekly losses, for the first time since December. The tech-laden index’s three-week loss of 7.2% is its biggest such decline since late December.