US close: Stocks stumble ahead of fresh inflation data

Wall Street put in a subdued performance on Wednesday, with major indices trending downwards as attention shifted towards forthcoming key economic data on US inflation, set to be released later in the week.

At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.54%, settling at 35,123.36 points, while the broader S&P 500 index declined by 0.7% to conclude at 4,467.71 points.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite was the hardest hit among the primary indices, sliding 1.17% to end the session at 13,722.02 points.

On the currency front, the dollar was last up 0.01% on sterling, trading at 78.63p, while it depreciated 0.01% against the euro to 91.11 euro cents.

It also slipped 0.03% against the yen, changing hands at JPY 143.68.

“US stocks have failed to display the same positive attitude as that of Europe today, with opening gains rapidly giving way to more losses,” said IG chief market analyst Chris Beauchamp earlier.

“With China’s inflation data behind them, the focus now turns to tomorrow’s US data.

“This is giving traders an excuse to dump stocks again, in an attempt to lock in profits ahead of what appears to be the first real pullback in US equities for months.”

China's economic struggles intensify amid decline in exports and deflation

On the economic front, China experienced deflation in July as consumer prices plunged by 0.3% on a year-on-year basis, contrasting the 0.2% increase observed in June.

The decrease was significantly impacted by a sharp transition in food inflation, which plummeted from a growth of 2.3% to a decline of 1.7%.

That inflation data came on the back of data from China's customs administration earlier in the week, which unveiled a steeper-than-anticipated fall in trade activities.

Exports in July descended by 14.5%, a sharper fall compared to the 12.4% drop in June and surpassing the consensus estimate of a 13.2% decline.

Imports also registered a considerable decline, dropping by 12.4% in July, following a 6.8% dip in the preceding month.

While Wednesday remained relatively quiet on the global economic data front, market analysts and stakeholders were shifting their focus towards key data releases from the United States and the United Kingdom.

US inflation and unemployment claim figures were slated for a Thursday release, while the UK's GDP will be under the spotlight on Friday.

Predictions suggested a rise in US annual CPI inflation to 3.3% for July, an increment from the 3% recorded in June.

Additionally, unemployment claims were projected to marginally rise to 230,000 from the prior figure of 227,000.

Lyft and Roblox stumble, Penn Entertainment shines

In equities, ridesharing giant Lyft saw its shares plummet by 10.03% following its second-quarter earnings release late Tuesday.

The report highlighted a modest top-line growth of merely 3%, reflecting the challenges Lyft was facing in its ongoing pricing competition with primary rival Uber.

That competitive pricing strategy also translated into a decline in revenue per active user for the quarter, which dropped 5% to $47.51.

Despite the unfavourable results, Credit Suisse was backing Lyft with an 'outperform' rating, though the firm had revised its target price downward from $23 to $18.

In the gaming sector, Roblox Corporation dived 21.94% after its second-quarter earnings failed to meet market expectations.

Notably, the daily active user count experienced a 1% dip.

Furthermore, while customers collectively spent 14 billion hours on the Roblox platform during the three months ended 30 June, that figure fell short of the projected 14.4 billion hours.

On the upside, Penn Entertainment emerged as a notable gainer, leaping 9.1% on the heels of its announcement of a strategic partnership with the Disney-owned ESPN.

As part of the collaboration, a new ESPN Bet sportsbook would be rolled out across 16 states later in the year.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.

Dow Jones - Risers

Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) $55.53 0.96%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $284.51 0.58%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $32.71 0.43%
Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $61.07 0.23%
Visa Inc. (V) $239.76 0.20%
Walmart Inc. (WMT) $160.91 0.16%
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $159.84 0.13%
Home Depot Inc. (HD) $328.06 0.12%
Dowdupont Inc. (DWDP) $0.00 0.00%
Nike Inc. (NKE) $109.67 0.00%

Dow Jones - Fallers

Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $205.86 -2.70%
International Business Machines Corporation (CDI) (IBM) $142.43 -2.34%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $34.28 -2.11%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $342.69 -1.60%
JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $153.79 -1.34%
American Express Co. (AXP) $163.76 -1.24%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $322.23 -1.17%
Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $29.26 -0.91%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $178.19 -0.90%
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $502.10 -0.74%

S&P 500 - Risers

Akamai Technologies Inc. (AKAM) $102.99 8.47%
CF Industries Holdings Inc. (CF) $82.76 4.42%
Everest Group (EG) $359.00 3.74%
Gen Digital Inc. (GEN) $20.85 2.81%
Coterra Energy Inc. (CTRA) $28.28 2.50%
HF Sinclair Corporation (DINO) $58.71 2.25%
Travel + Leisure Co (TNL) $41.65 2.13%
Sba Communications Corp. (SBAC) $227.71 2.09%
Fortinet Inc. (FTNT) $59.78 2.07%
Apache Corp. (APA) $44.22 2.05%

S&P 500 - Fallers

Fiserv Inc. (FI) $0.00 -100.00%
Nektar Therapeutics (NKTR) $0.91 -8.94%
Brighthouse Financial, Inc. (BHF) $50.72 -7.11%
Sl Green Realty Corp. (SLG) $35.33 -5.58%
Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $425.54 -4.72%
Vornado Realty Trust (VNO) $22.65 -3.70%
Broadcom Inc. (AVGO) $850.73 -3.67%
Carnival Corp. (CCL) $17.27 -3.63%
Keycorp (KEY) $11.51 -3.60%
Universal Health Services Inc. (UHS) $131.59 -3.44%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Biomarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (BMRN) $93.23 2.89%
Gen Digital Inc. (GEN) $20.85 2.81%
Trip.com Group Limited (TCOM) $40.88 2.35%
Henry Schein Inc. (HSIC) $77.42 1.95%
Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance Inc. (ULTA) $446.65 1.94%
Idexx Laboratories Inc. (IDXX) $518.75 1.76%
Incyte Corp. (INCY) $65.42 1.38%
Sirius XM Holdings Inc (SIRI) $4.88 1.24%
Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR) $148.42 1.10%
Verisk Analytics Inc. (VRSK) $235.02 1.07%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Fiserv Inc. (FI) $0.00 -100.00%
Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $425.54 -4.72%
Broadcom Inc. (AVGO) $850.73 -3.67%
Tesla Inc (TSLA) $242.19 -3.01%
American Airlines Group (AAL) $15.76 -2.60%
Meta Platforms Inc. (META) $305.21 -2.38%
Qurate Retail Inc. (QRTEA) $0.89 -2.32%
DENTSPLY Sirona Inc. (XRAY) $38.47 -2.31%
Netflix Inc. (NFLX) $428.90 -2.14%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $34.28 -2.11%