US close: Dow continues winning streak as Nasdaq sinks

dl wall street wall st new york city nyc new york stock exchange nyse dow jones industrial average nasdaq subway platform sign unsplash — Sharecast / Martin Ceralde via Unsplash

Wall Street finished Thursday’s trading with mixed outcomes, as the Dow Jones Industrial Average saw its longest series of gains in six years, while disappointing earnings reports weighed down the Nasdaq.

At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average continued its impressive streak, climbing 0.47% to end the day at 35,225.18.

Contrastingly, the S&P 500 fell 0.68% to 4,534.87, and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 2.05% to finish at 14,063.31.

In currency markets, the dollar was last down 0.04% against sterling at 77.68p, while it declined 0.07% on the common currency to 89.79 euro cents.

Against the yen, the greenback slipped 0.17% to change hands at JPY 139.83.

“Earnings season got off to a decent start thanks to the banks, but gains have been trimmed following earnings from Tesla and Netflix that have failed to live up to expectations,” said IG senior market analyst Axel Rudolph earlier.

“Both stocks have been at the forefront of gains this year, but with this comes the pressure to outperform. Investors expecting a return to the bull market of years past will perhaps hope that the stocks continue to edge lower for now, to offer up a buying opportunity over the summer.”

US unemployment hits two-month low; China's central bank holds lending rates steady

In economic news, the US labour market saw an encouraging decrease in jobless claims, reaching a two-month low.

According to a fresh report from the Department of Labor, unemployment filings for the week ended 15 July dropped by 9,000 to land at 228,000, contrary to economists' anticipations of a rise to 244,000.

Additionally, the Department's four-week moving average for new claims - a more stable metric used to level out week-to-week fluctuations - fell by 9,250 to 246,750.

Continued unemployment claims, referencing filings not made for the first time and corresponding to the week ended 8 July, saw a modest uptick of 33,000 meanwhile, to total 1.754 million.

Across the Pacific, the People's Bank of China (PBoC) chose to keep its standard lending rates steady on Thursday in a move consistent with market expectations.

The one-year loan prime rate was held at 3.55%, while the five-year loan prime rate remained unchanged at 4.2%.

Its decision to keep the rates static aligned with the PBoC's recent action to maintain its medium-term lending facility rate earlier in the week.

Netflix and Tesla slip, United Airlines ascends on earnings

In equity markets, tech heavyweights Netflix and Tesla both took a tumble on Thursday, dragging the Nasdaq down with them.

Streaming entertainment giant Netflix dropped 8.41% after its quarterly earnings report overnight, which disappointed investors by failing to meet revenue expectations.

Electric vehicle pioneer Tesla also ended the day in negative territory, with its stock down 9.74%.

Despite reporting second-quarter earnings that surpassed expectations, Tesla's performance was unable to live up to the substantial hype that had been building ahead of the figures.

On the upside, United Airlines soared 3.23% as the legacy carrier was buoyed by a robust set of second-quarter numbers, while it also increased its full-year guidance.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.

Dow Jones - Risers

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $168.38 6.07%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $350.86 3.03%
Boeing Co. (BA) $213.61 2.40%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $108.46 2.37%
International Business Machines Corporation (CDI) (IBM) $138.42 2.14%
Walmart Inc. (WMT) $157.48 1.85%
Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $173.63 1.80%
JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $156.15 1.23%
Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $62.39 1.22%
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $156.40 1.11%