Opening Comment — Friday, May 17, 2024
DJIA: 39,869.38, down 38.62
S&P 500: 5,297.10, down 11.05
NASDAQ: 16,698.32, down 44.07
Stocks little changed to end out week
Stock futures are little changed on Friday, as investors continue to evaluate this week’s inflation data and the multitude of Federal Reserve (Fed) speakers discussing interest rate policy. The Dow and the S&P 500 are both nearly flat. The Nasdaq 100 is increasing 0.1% relative to fair value on the GLOBEX.
U.S. equities were lower on Thursday, while the Dow briefly reached the 40,000 mark for the first time. April’s housing starts increased less than estimates, while April’s industrial production stagnated, compared to an anticipated increase. The Dow was down 0.1%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite fell 0.3%. The S&P 500 decreased 0.2% with 10 of 11 sectors finishing in negative territory. The Consumer Discretionary sector declined the most, falling 0.8%.
On the data front today, the Conference Board’s U.S. Leading Economic Index is forecasted to decrease 0.3% month-over-month in April, similar to the prior month’s change.
Across the pond, European stocks are mostly lower in mid-day trading with the final reading for the eurozone’s April CPI coming in unchanged from the preliminary reading, in line with consensus estimates.
Overnight in Asia, stocks were mixed with China’s industrial production for April increasing more than consensus estimates, while the country’s retail sales increased less than expectations in April. Hong Kong and China’s stocks rose on Friday following the announcement of extensive measures by China’s central bank aimed at reviving the struggling property market.
In FOREX trading, the dollar is higher despite this week’s indications of slowing inflation.
Over in the commodity pits, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil is 0.2% higher at $79.40/barrel, following signs of strengthening global demand.
In the metals complex, gold is 0.2% higher at $2389.50/ounce despite a strengthening dollar.