The DJIA is slightly below breakeven, with all eyes on Syria and the Trump-Xi summit
Despite mounting geopolitical fears after a U.S. airstrike in Syria and a mixed jobs report, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) has traded in a relatively narrow range and was last seen only modestly lower. With today's losses, though, the Dow is headed for a weekly loss. Aside from the nonfarm payrolls data, stocks are reacting to a 0.4% rise in U.S. wholesale inventories in February, in line with estimates, as well as a jump in oil prices -- with May-dated crude futures last seen 0.8% higher at $52.13 per barrel, near a one-month high. Elsewhere, the summit between President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping continues into day two.
Continue reading for more on today's market -- and don't miss:
- Analyst: 2 reasons to buy Twilio stock.
- 3 gold ETFs making major moves after the Syria strike.
- Plus, CVS puts pick up; Baird batters Aecom stock; and DryShips dives.
Among the stocks with unusual put volume today is pharmacy chain CVS Health Corp (NYSE:CVS), as the contracts are running at seven times the expected intraday rate. In the lead by a healthy margin is the out-of-the-money May 75 put, where traders may be buying new positions to bet on short-term losses. CVS stock is currently down 0.4% at $76.67, and sitting on a nearly 3% year-to-date deficit.
One of the biggest decliners on the New York Stock Exchange so far is Aecom (NYSE:ACM), shedding 5.9% to trade at $33.30. Pressuring the infrastructure stock is a bearish analyst note from Baird. Earlier, ACM touched a 2017 low of $32.68.
The worst percentage decliner on the Nasdaq is DryShips Inc. (NASDAQ:DRYS), diving 27.1% to $0.75 and earlier touching a record low of $0.72. Prompting the sell-off on shares of the bulk shipper was last night's news of a 1-for-4 reverse stock split.