US close: Stocks finish weaker as earnings roll in
Wall Street closed weaker on Tuesday, as investors digested a number of earnings reports and several US states began the process of reopening their economies.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended down 0.13% at 24,101.55, the S&P 500 was off 0.52% at 2,863.39, and the Nasdaq Composite was 1.4% lower at 8,607.73.
Equities had opened on the other side of the line, with the Dow adding 148.54 points at the start of the session, initially continuing a rally started late last week after Donald Trump signed off on another economic stimulus package.
Investors were focussed on news that the states of Alaska, Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and others were all in the process of reopening their economies and getting residents back to work.
“Naturally the mood is helped by reports of cities and states around the world either starting to reopen or at least planning for it,” said Oanda's Craig Erlam.
“We appear to have moved beyond peak virus, for now, in the worst affected parts of Europe and North America, which is a relief, but any reopening is going to be extremely gradual so a return to normal is not going to happen any time soon.
“The 'new normal', that is.”
Oil prices were on the rebound at the end of the trading day as well, with West Texas Intermediate last up 5.32% at $13.46.
On the macro front, America's shortfall on trade in goods with the rest of the world widened last month amid a sharp drop in exports.
According to the Department of Commerce, in seasonally adjusted terms, the deficit on the US trade in goods balance jumped by 7.2% month-on-month to reach $64.2bn.
Elsewhere, consumer confidence tumbled in April as measures aimed at curbing the spread of Covid-19 interrupted economic activity and threw millions of Americans out of work.
The Conference Board's consumer confidence index dropped to a reading of 86.9 in April from a downwardly revised 118.8 in March.
In corporate news, with certain industries set to benefit from the patronage of a wave of consumers amid stare reopenings, mall operator Simon Property Group was up 10.74% and discount retailer Kohl's added 6.72%.
However, shares in the so-called ‘FAANG’ tech giants were in the red, with Facebook off 2.45%, Amazon 2.61% weaker, Apple losing 1.62%, Netflix behind by 1.4%, and Google owner Alphabet down 3.31%.
3M managed to close up 2.58% after suspending its full-year outlook as the coronavirus outbreak wreaked havoc on the group, while PepsiCo was up 1.38% after it beat on earnings and scrapped its forecast due to the pandemic.
Trade bellwether Caterpillar eked out gains of 0.2% after topping profit estimates in the first quarter of its trading year, but falling short on sales and choosing not to issue guidance as a result of Covid-19 interruptions.
Dow Jones - Risers
American Express Co. (AXP) $88.19 3.68%
3M Co. (MMM) $157.61 2.58%
Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) $44.97 2.34%
Boeing Co. (BA) $131.30 2.04%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $187.01 1.89%
Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $104.29 1.36%
JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $95.29 0.71%
Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $44.65 0.50%
Raytheon Technologies Corporation (RTX) $65.39 0.49%
International Business Machines Corporation (CDI) (IBM) $126.27 0.28%
Dow Jones - Fallers
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $81.18 -3.33%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $169.81 -2.44%
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $288.37 -1.91%
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $151.39 -1.88%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $278.58 -1.62%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $42.49 -1.32%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $58.75 -1.21%
Pfizer Inc. (PFE) $37.91 -1.10%
Nike Inc. (NKE) $88.80 -0.64%
Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $116.89 -0.48%
S&P 500 - Risers
Harley-Davidson Inc. (HOG) $21.82 15.21%
Alliance Data Systems Corp. (ADS) $47.60 15.00%
Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd (NCLH) $13.09 14.42%
Alaska Air Group Inc. (ALK) $31.58 13.39%
American Airlines Group (AAL) $11.26 12.38%
D. R. Horton Inc. (DHI) $46.93 11.45%
Carnival Corp. (CCL) $14.46 11.40%
United Airlines Holdings Inc (UAL) $27.84 11.36%
Simon Property Group Inc. (SPG) $63.33 10.74%
Gap Inc. (GPS) $8.61 10.53%
S&P 500 - Fallers
Cincinnati Financial Corp. (CINF) $71.81 -12.46%
Arconic Inc. (ARNC) $8.20 -10.38%
United Parcel Service Inc. (UPS) $96.43 -5.97%
Motorola Solutions Inc (MSI) $145.43 -5.83%
Waters Corp. (WAT) $184.33 -5.59%
Incyte Corp. (INCY) $97.67 -5.16%
Centene Corp. (CNC) $67.17 -5.15%
Mettler Toledo International (MTD) $699.98 -4.80%
Activision Blizzard Inc. (ATVI) $63.86 -4.77%
PPG Industries Inc. (PPG) $91.49 -4.70%
Nasdaq 100 - Risers
American Airlines Group (AAL) $11.26 12.38%
Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance Inc. (ULTA) $218.68 5.09%
Expedia Group Inc. (EXPE) $71.84 3.89%
Western Digital Corp. (WDC) $44.70 3.74%
Align Technology Inc. (ALGN) $203.51 3.48%
Microchip Technology Inc. (MCHP) $87.35 3.12%
Cintas Corp. (CTAS) $218.17 2.68%
Booking Holdings Inc. (BKNG) $1,439.32 2.59%
Sirius XM Holdings Inc (SIRI) $5.76 2.58%
Marriott International - Class A (MAR) $87.42 2.52%
Nasdaq 100 - Fallers
Incyte Corp. (INCY) $97.67 -5.16%
Activision Blizzard Inc. (ATVI) $63.86 -4.77%
JD.com, Inc. (JD) $43.58 -4.39%
Adobe Systems Inc. (ADBE) $333.45 -4.32%
Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. (TTWO) $120.51 -4.30%
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (VRTX) $256.96 -4.30%
Citrix Systems Inc. (CTXS) $141.19 -4.26%
Idexx Laboratories Inc. (IDXX) $264.25 -4.21%
Netflix Inc. (NFLX) $403.83 -4.16%
Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) $111.35 -4.03%