Wall Street posted another weekly loss in the S&P 500 and Nasdaq indices, the second in a row in both cases, after several US inflation data releases this week failed to convince investors.
The S&P 500 fell 0.3% accumulated and the Nasdaq 1.9%, while the Dow Jones remained afloat and closed the week with an advance of 0.6%.
Initially, the market was encouraged on Thursday by the July consumer price index, which came in at 3.2% at its annualized rate, higher than the previous month but not as bad as analysts had expected.
But this inflation data was qualified this Friday when the producer price index was known, which includes the wholesale cost of unprocessed products, and which rose 0.3% compared to the previous month, more than expected .
According to experts, the persistence of inflation has raised doubts about the trajectory of the Federal Reserve (Fed) interest rate hike when many hope that the central bank will soon announce a new pause in its campaign.
“Inflation continues to decline, however it remains above (the Fed’s) target. Until price pressures convincingly consolidate on track for 2%, rate cuts seem a long way off,” they said. Wells Fargo analysts in a note.
Other than that, the quarterly earnings season is winding down and, after the big tech accounts came out, many investors have sold their shares in this sector, hence the S&P 500 and Nasdaq have been weighed down.
“Technology is leading sales, partly reflecting profit-taking after a strong first half of the year and competition from rising yields,” analyst Kevin Gordon of the Schwab Center for Financial Research said in a commentary. .
Disney recovers on Wall Street
This week, one of the outstanding results was that of the entertainment giant Disney, which rose 3% after announcing losses due to the costs of its restructuring but also new measures to make its media business profitable.
Looking ahead to the next few days, there are nerves about the accounts of the main retailers that serve as a consumer thermometer, such as Walmart, Target or Home Depot.
In the oil market, a Texas barrel stands at US$83.19 (75.90 euros) and has already gone up for seven weeks due to forecasts of tight supply and record demand for the rest of the year.
Source: Larepublica
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