The Nasdaq finally broke its longest daily win streak of 2018
Stocks took a turn for the worse in today's trading, with the major equity benchmarks finishing the day significantly lower. The Dow plunged triple digits in response to fresh global trade tensions, tariff threats, and Turkey's lira crash, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq snapped its eight-day win streak. On the flip side, the VIX logged its biggest daily percentage gain since late June. Looking ahead to next week, the market is slated to see quarterly reports from a handful of blue chips, including Home Depot (HD) and Walmart (WMT).
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI - 25,313.14) plunged 196.1 points, or 0.8%. Walmart stock led the mere five advancing blue chips with a 1.3% gain, while Intel (INTC) paced the 24 decliners with a 2.6% drop, and Cisco Systems (CSCO) ended the day flat. For the week, the Dow fell 0.6%, snapping a five-week win streak.
The S&P 500 Index (SPX - 2,833.28) lost 20.3 points, or 0.7%, while the Nasdaq Composite (IXIC - 7,839.11) shed 52.7 points, or 0.7%. The SPX fell 0.3%, and the IXIC picked up 0.4%, for the week.
The Cboe Volatility Index (VIX - 13.16) marked its best day since late June, picking up 1.9 points, or 16.8%, for the day. For the week, the VIX soared 13.1%
5 Items on our Radar Today
- Nike (NKE) was hit with a lawsuit by former employees of its head office for gender discrimination. The complaint is seeking class-action status, with the plaintiffs looking to secure unspecified punitive damages and back pay. (CNBC)
- Although today's consumer price index (CPI) showed a surge in the cost of living over the past 12 months, prices fell for goods like coffee, vending machine food, and non-prescription drugs. Sports equipment also saw a significant change, falling nearly 3% over the past year. (MarketWatch)
- Second-quarter results sparked one Apple supplier's rally.
- A bullish analyst called the Dropbox drop-off a "gift."
- How U.S.-China trade tensions slammed Microchip stock.
Data courtesy of Trade-Alert
Crude Ends Higher; Gold Suffers on Firm Dollar
Crude futures managed a sharp turnaround, as the monthly International Energy Agency (IEA) report revealed higher output from Russia and a newly hiked global demand forecast for 2019. September-dated oil finished up 82 cents, or 1.3%, at $67.63 per barrel. However, for the week, crude suffered a 1.3% loss.
As the lira crisis drove investors to the U.S. dollar, gold ended today's session lower. December-dated gold fell 90 cents, or 0.07%, to settle at $1,219 per ounce for the day. For the week, gold ended down 0.3%.