Stock Market Today: Dow ends lower after Powell signals rate hikes remain in play
Investing.com -- The Dow closed lower Thursday, as Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell dealt a blow to bets on sooner rather later rate cuts after signaling that the Fed isn't ready to close the curtain on rate hikes.
At 16:00 ET (21:00 GMT), the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 220 points or 0.7%. The S&P 500 was down 0.8% and the NASDAQ Composite was down 0.9%, with both indexes snapping their eight-and nine-day win streak, respectively.
Powell's sends clear reminder that further rate hikes remain in play
The Federal Open Market Committee are "not confident" that it has tightened policy to sufficiently restrictive stance needed to bring inflation back to Fed's 2% target, Powell said on Thursday.
While Powell balanced his remarks by reiterating that the central bank would progress carefully on future monetary policy decision, the Fed chief also said "if it becomes appropriate to tighten policy further, we will not hesitate to do so," scuppering recent optimism that the Fed hiking cycle was over.
The remarks forced traders cool their bets on sooner rate cuts, with the first cut now expected in June rather than May next year.
Treasury yields jumped; 30-year Treasury yield auction results stoke demand concerns
Treasury yields held onto gains, with the yield on the 2-year Treasury rising about 12 basis points to 4.64%.
The yield on the United States 30-Year, meanwhile, jumped 12 basis points after the $24 billon 30-year treasury auction attracted less demand than expected. The auction yields of 4.769% was 5.3 basis points higher than the pre-sale level of 4.716%, pointing to signs of weak demand.
Becton Dickinson leads health care lower after guidance falls short
Becton Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) fell more than 9% to weigh on the broader health care sector after the medical technology weaker annual guidance offseting better-than-expected quarterly revenue.
The company forecast EPS for 2024 of between $12.70 to $13 a share on revenue of $20.1 billion to $20.34B, missing analysts estimates of $13.52 on revenue of $20.36B.
Other health care stocks including Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY), AbbVie Inc (NYSE:ABBV) and Gilead Sciences Inc (NASDAQ:GILD) were also a drag on the sector.
{{|Tesla slumps on HSBC downgrade to dent consumer stocks}}
Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA), down 6%, led the move lower in consumer stocks after HSBC issues a sell rating on the electric vehicle maker on concerns that it may longer-than-expected for the company to execute on its ideas.
HSBC flagged Tesla CEO Elon Musk's prominence as a "considerable singleman risk at the group and slapped a $146 price target on the company.
Walt Disney shines with 4Q results
Luxury fashion firm Tapestry (NYSE:TPR) beat profit expectations but missed on revenue, and its full year 2024 outlook was about inline with estimates. Shares rose 3.8%.
Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) rose more than 6% after the entertainment giant beat earnings forecasts in its fiscal fourth quarter, supported by subscriber growth at its streaming services as well as higher attendance at its theme parks in Shanghai, Hong Kong and California.
Oil recovers despite demand worries
Oil prices edged higher Thursday, attempting to recover from their lowest levels in more than three months although worries of waning demand in China and the U.S., the two biggest economies in the world, remain.
Data released earlier Thursday showed that China, the world's biggest oil importer, fell back into disinflationary territory in October.
This followed the American Petroleum Institute, an industry body, stating that U.S. crude oil stocks rose by almost 12 million barrels last week. If confirmed by official data, that would be the biggest build since February.
(Liz Moyer, Peter Nurse, and Oliver Gray contributed to this item.)
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Stock Market Today: Dow ends lower after Powell signals rate hikes remain in play
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