Wall Street recorded a decline on Thursday
by Chuck Mikolajczak
The New York Stock Exchange ended down on Thursday, oscillating between slight gains and losses, investors having favored caution in the wake of a sharp increase, while the results season begins and uncertainties remain about inflation and monetary policy of the Federal Reserve.
The Dow Jones index lost 0.16%, or 68.42 points, to 43,153.13 points.
The broader S&P-500 lost 12.57 points, or 0.21%, to 5,937.34 points.
The Nasdaq Composite fell 172.94 points (0.89%) to 19,338.29 points.
The main Wall Street indices recorded unprecedented increases in more than two months on Wednesday, in the wake of a reassuring report on inflation in the United States.
Data released on Thursday, however, fueled speculation that the Fed will slow the pace of its monetary easing this year, with resilient consumption and a job market prompting investors to be cautious.
Noting that the market “heaved a sigh of relief” on Wednesday and thus solidified a bit after a tricky few weeks, Rick Pitcairn, Philadelphia-based chief market strategist at Pitcairn, said there is now a need for “more data and additional results” to determine the turn of events.
“Bank results have been solid,” he continued. “They are looking forward without revising their figures downwards. This has given the market a little courage.”
After the significant gains recorded in the wake of the US presidential election in early November, Wall Street has stalled, with the S&P-500 in the red in four of the past five weeks.
In the background, concern that the vast customs duties promised by Donald Trump will encourage a rise in inflation, with Fed officials making comments according to which the institution could be more conservative than expected in its cuts rate.
Fed Governor Christopher Waller, however, said the US central bank could cut interest rates sooner and more quickly if inflation continued to fall.
These comments fueled the decline in bond yields on Thursday. Ten-year US Treasury bonds fell again, after settling at a fourteen-month high at the start of the week.
Note, among stocks, Morgan Stanley gained 4.03% after publishing an increased quarterly turnover, while Bank of America declined by 0.98%. UnitedHealth plunged following disappointing quarterly results, weighing on the Dow Jones.
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(Written by Jean Terzian)
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