US open: Stocks dip after consumer sentiment hits 6-month low
Wall Street was trading mixed in early trading at the end of the week as investors digested news that consumer confidence had soured in early May, in part as a result of concern around the debt ceiling standoff in Washington.
The University of Michigan's consumer confidence index fell to a six-month low 57.7 in early May from a reading of 63.5 for April (consensus: 63.0).
Longer-run inflation expectations on the other hand rose by two tenths of a percentage point from the month before to 3.2%.
As of 1518 BST, the Dow Jones Industrials was trading 26.03 points or 0.08% higher to 33,337.23, alongside a 0.5 point of 0.01% rise for the S&P 500 to 4,130.68.
The Nasdaq Composite on the other hand was down by 21.71 points or 0.18% to 12,307.09.
In parallel, the yield on the benchmark 2-month US Treasury note was standing seven basis points higher at 4.9%.
Front-dated gold futures on COMEX were flattish at $2,021.0/oz.
The US dollar spot index was 0.21% higher alongside at 102.27.
Some market observers also noted a so-called 'death cross' technical signal had formed on the 10-year US Treasury yield.
Overnight, US President Joe Biden and the Republican speaker of the US House of Representatives, Kevin McCarthy, postponed until the following week a meeting on the debt ceiling that had been scheduled to take place on Friday.
The announcement sparked optimism that aides for both sides had made progress, something that was later reportedly confirmed.
Concern was that the federal government might run into the debt ceiling as soon as 1 June.
In the background, speaking at a European Central Bank policy symposium, Fed Governor Michelle Bowman said that more interest rates hikes were likely if "inflation remained high and the jobs market tight".
"I also expect that our policy rate will need to remain sufficiently restrictive for some time," she added.
Fed Governor Philip Jefferson and St.Louis Fed chief James Bullard were to participate in an all-day policy conference at the Hoover Institution.
In other economic news, the Department of Labor reported that the country's import price index rose at 0.4% month-on-month clip in April (consensus: 0.3%), although March's drop was revised down by two tenths of a percentage point to -0.8%.
ARS Pharmaceuticals shares surged 80% on news that the Food and Drug Administration had backed its Neffy treatment.
Charles Schwab reported that clients assets grew in April by 1% when compared to the previous month.
The KBW Nasdaq Bank Index was down by 0.64%, having given up earlier gains.
Dow Jones - Risers
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $157.34 0.72%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $211.52 0.71%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $118.15 0.51%
Home Depot Inc. (HD) $288.97 0.44%
Walmart Inc. (WMT) $153.80 0.44%
Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $155.03 0.41%
Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $183.56 0.41%
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $490.64 0.39%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $46.54 0.38%
Boeing Co. (BA) $202.55 0.35%
Dow Jones - Fallers
Nike Inc. (NKE) $120.79 -1.17%
Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $201.58 -0.93%
JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $135.10 -0.70%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $307.97 -0.69%
3M Co. (MMM) $100.13 -0.64%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $172.78 -0.56%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $319.83 -0.28%
Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $31.10 -0.21%
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $92.21 -0.11%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $28.85 -0.02%
S&P 500 - Risers
News Corp Class B (NWS) $18.11 7.61%
News Corp Class A (NWSA) $18.00 7.53%
H&R Block Inc. (HRB) $32.49 2.65%
Charles Schwab Corp. (SCHW) $48.90 2.44%
Quanta Services Inc. (PWR) $174.63 1.77%
Eli Lilly and Company (LLY) $442.35 1.56%
Nucor Corp. (NUE) $139.49 1.44%
PVH Corp. (PVH) $84.05 1.42%
Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (WTW) $231.42 1.35%
Edison International (EIX) $74.16 1.30%
S&P 500 - Fallers
Gen Digital Inc. (GEN) $16.05 -6.50%
Vornado Realty Trust (VNO) $12.64 -4.46%
Dish Network Corp. (DISH) $6.01 -3.45%
Boston Properties Inc. (BXP) $48.06 -2.77%
Gap Inc. (GPS) $8.01 -2.73%
Comerica Inc. (CMA) $31.85 -2.50%
VF Corp. (VFC) $21.03 -2.12%
Zions Bancorporation (ZION) $22.21 -2.07%
Sl Green Realty Corp. (SLG) $21.13 -2.06%
Lincoln National Corp. (LNC) $19.55 -1.96%
Nasdaq 100 - Risers
Incyte Corp. (INCY) $65.00 1.29%
Tesla Inc (TSLA) $174.26 1.27%
Ross Stores Inc. (ROST) $103.81 1.24%
Illumina Inc. (ILMN) $210.35 1.03%
Activision Blizzard Inc. (ATVI) $77.81 1.00%
Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) $126.49 0.93%
Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR) $156.65 0.93%
Intuit Inc. (INTU) $428.76 0.91%
PACCAR Inc. (PCAR) $73.05 0.84%
Automatic Data Processing Inc. (ADP) $211.57 0.84%
Nasdaq 100 - Fallers
Gen Digital Inc. (GEN) $16.05 -6.50%
JD.com, Inc. (JD) $35.90 -4.58%
Dish Network Corp. (DISH) $6.01 -3.45%
NetEase Inc. Ads (NTES) $86.04 -2.66%
Baidu Inc. (BIDU) $120.91 -2.63%
Sirius XM Holdings Inc (SIRI) $3.53 -2.62%
eBay Inc. (EBAY) $44.92 -1.88%
Mercadolibre Inc. (MELI) $1,272.29 -1.87%
Expedia Group Inc. (EXPE) $89.71 -1.66%
Adobe Systems Inc. (ADBE) $336.03 -1.62%