NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street was relatively stable on Wednesday. Inflation update That was roughly in line with economists’ expectations.
The S&P 500 was up 0.3% in midday trading. One of the best days of the yearThe Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 184 points, or 0.5%, as of 11:35 a.m. Eastern time, while the Nasdaq Composite was up 0.1%.
Treasury yields have also edged lower in the bond market after initially reeling after the U.S. government said consumers paid higher prices than expected. 2.9% increase Last month, gasoline, food and housing costs were higher than the same month last year.
The data suggests the Fed is on track. lower key interest rates At its next meeting in September, Wall Street will see some long-awaited action. The Fed Fee in Economic pressure level Looking forward to it Inflation control Lower interest rates, which were above 9% two years ago, would ease pressure on both the economy and investment prices.
The only question is The size of the first cut Will interest rates rise since the COVID crash of 2020 by the traditional 0.25 percentage points or a more dramatic 0.5 percentage points?
Wednesday’s consumer price index was less sluggish than the inflation reading released the previous day. Wholesale inflationBut Chris Larkin, managing director of trading and investments at Morgan Stanley E-Trade, said the situation is unlikely to change significantly.
He said the Fed could cut rates more aggressively if the bulk of data in the coming weeks suggests the economy is slowing, including a report on Thursday on how much of a cut U.S. consumers have made. Retail Spending.
While the economy is still growing and many economists see a recession as unlikely, concerns about its strength are growing. A worse-than-expected hiring month The survey was conducted by U.S. employers in July.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 3.81% from Tuesday’s close of 3.85%, the latest since hitting above 4.70% in April amid growing expectations of a rate cut.
The yield on the two-year note, which more accurately reflects Fed expectations, was flat at 3.94 percent late on Tuesday as traders considered whether an expected rate cut in September would be conventional or larger.
On Wall Street, Keranova rose 7.7%. Mars announced it would acquire It acquired the company that makes Pringles, Cheez-Its and Kellogg’s for $83.50 per share in cash. The companies value the deal, including debt, at $35.9 billion. Keranova said Kellogg’s It will be split into three companies in the summer of 2022.
Cardinal Health rose 5.2%, joining the ranks of companies that reported spring profits that beat analysts’ expectations.
Among the losers was Brinker International, which owns Chiliz and Maggiano’s. The company tumbled 11.9% after reporting weaker-than-expected profits for its latest quarter. That came despite strong sales at Chiliz thanks to price hikes, increased foot traffic and the launch of its “Big Smasher” burger. Expectations for Brinker International were high, but the company’s shares are up nearly 44% so far this year.
Starbucks fell 4.1%, giving back some of the big gains from the previous day. I lured Brian Nicol out. He took over as CEO from Chipotle Mexican Grill.
Overseas stock markets saw stock indexes rise slightly in many European countries, while results were mixed in Asia.
Japan’s Nikkei stock average, which has been at the center of some of the most volatile financial markets in recent weeks, rose just 0.6 percent after a volatile day. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida He surprised the nation on Wednesday by announcing he would step down once the party elects a new leader next month.
___
AP Business Writers Yuri Kageyama and Matt Ott contributed.
