US close: Dow adds over 750 points as earnings seasons continues

dl wall street st new york city nyc nyse stock exchange ny dow jones nasdaq sp finance us usa united states of america — Wall StreetSharecast photo / Josh White

Wall Street stocks closed in positive territory on Tuesday, as second quarter earnings season rolled on.

At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 2.43% at 31,827.05, as the S&P 500 added 2.76% to 3,936.69 and the Nasdaq Composite jumped 3.11% to 11,713.15.

The Dow closed 754.44 points higher on Tuesday, more than reversing the losses it recorded on Monday as a busy week of earnings kicked off with updates from some of the nation's biggest banks.

“If markets had grown accustomed to the pattern of equity weakness and dollar strength, this week has brought welcome reprieve,” said IG senior market analyst Joshua Mahony.

“While many have been worried over the mental implications of investors being repeatedly of the gloomy economic outlook, we appear to be seeing a sell-the-rumour-buy-the-fact scenario play out this earnings season.”

On the macro front, housebuilding activity in the US slowed sharply last month.

According to the Department of Commerce, in seasonally adjusted terms, housing starts slipped by 2.0% month-on-month to reach an annualised rate of 1.55m - against consensus expectations for 1.59m, and 6.3% below their year-earlier level.

Similarly, building permits, which lead starts, dipped by 0.6% versus May to hit 1.68m, although that was ahead of the consensus forecast for a print of 1.67m.

Corporate earnings were again in focus on Tuesday, with drugmaker Johnson & Johnson losing 1.46% after it cut its full-year profit guidance, as the firm took a hit from a strengthened dollar.

IBM tumbled 5.25% after it lowered cash flow forecasts despite reporting earnings that beat earnings and revenue estimates.

On the upside, toymaker Hasbro managed gains of 0.71% after it swung to a second-quarter profit, boosted by a strong performance in its gaming unit.

Elsewhere, Bloomberg revealed overnight that Apple would decelerate hiring and spending on growth in 2023 as part of an effort to prepare for a potential economic downturn.

That led to the consumer electronics giant gaining 2.67% by the close.

Reporting by Josh White at Sharecast.com. Additional reporting by Iain Gilbert.

Dow Jones - Risers

Boeing Co. (BA) $156.13 5.69%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $318.05 5.57%
Nike Inc. (NKE) $109.19 5.05%
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $99.61 4.09%
Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) $52.45 3.92%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $40.22 3.90%
American Express Co. (AXP) $147.78 3.83%
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $144.61 3.60%
Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $173.81 3.53%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $179.49 3.46%