Traders work on the main floor of the New York Stock Exchange shortly after the opening bell
The New York Stock Exchange opened lower on Tuesday after the release of retail sales statistics that suggest resilience in consumer spending, which could prompt the US Federal Reserve (Fed) to opt for a pause on its decline. key rates in January.
In early trading, the Dow Jones index lost 197.41 points, or 0.45%, to 43,520.07 points. The broader Standard & Poor’s 500 fell 26.16 points, or 0.43%, to 6,047.92 points.
The Nasdaq Composite lost 75.72 points, or 0.38%, to 20,098.18 points.
An hour before Wall Street opened, the Commerce Department said U.S. retail sales rose in November at a better-than-expected pace, 0.7% month over month.
“This is further proof that at the global level, the American consumer is still in great shape (…) it proves that the American economy is on a solid basis,” underlines Eric Sterner, investment director for Apollon Wealth Management.
In the bond market, the yield on 10-year U.S. Treasuries is at a more than three-week high of 4.442%, putting pressure on rate-sensitive stocks.
A 25 basis point rate cut from the Fed on Wednesday, following a two-day meeting, is all but a given, but most observers expect the central bank to keep rates unchanged during its January meeting, given the solidity of economic indicators.
In values, mega-caps like Nvidia (-2.23%) and Amazon (-0.56%) are in decline, while the CBOE volatility index (+3.13%) has exceeded the threshold of 15 points for the first time in almost three weeks.
Pfizer advances 3.86% after announcing Tuesday that it expects 2025 profits in line with Wall Street expectations, at the twilight of a tumultuous year.
Ebay takes 0.61% after revealing a three billion dollar share buyback plan, according to a stock market notice.
Values linked to cryptoassets such as Mara Holdings (+2.36%) and Riot Platforms (+1.71%) are in the green while bitcoin has exceeded $107,000.
(Written by Claude Chendjou, edited by Blandine Hénault)
