 "US stock market: Wall Street indices hover around all-time highs, investors eye inflation data")
A choppy trading session on Wall Street Wednesday left stock indexes hovering near the all-time highs set last week. Notable moves in individual stocks followed corporate earnings reports.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average edged up less than 0.1 per cent, closing at 39,127.80. The S&P 500 gained 0.2 per cent, ending at 5,477.90, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index rose 0.5 per cent to 17,805.16.
Market movers
Shipping giant FedEx surged 15.5 per cent after reporting earnings that surpassed expectations, driven by job cuts and other cost-reduction measures. Conversely, General Mills dropped 4.6 per cent following a report of a 6 per cent decline in quarterly sales as price inflation dampened demand.
Among notable movers, Rivian Automotive soared more than 23 per cent after announcing that Volkswagen would invest up to $5 billion in the electric vehicle manufacturer, forming a joint venture.
Whirlpool jumped 17.1 per cent following a Reuters report that German engineering company Robert Bosch is considering a takeover bid.
Moderna tumbled 11 per cent after clinical testing revealed a sharp decline in the efficacy of its RSV vaccine after the first year.
Amazon shares rose 3.9 per cent, surpassing $2 trillion in market value for the first time.
Investors focus on PCE index
This week, Wall Street’s attention is focused on the government’s upcoming inflation report due Friday. The personal consumption expenditures (PCE) index, the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation measure, is expected to show a slight decrease in the inflation rate to 2.6 per cent in May from 2.7 per cent in April.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsThe Fed aims to reduce inflation to its 2 per cent target, but the rate has proven resistant, with the PCE hovering just below 3 per cent for several months. The more widely recognized consumer price index has similarly hovered around 3 per cent throughout 2024, down from a peak of 9.1 per cent in mid-2022.
The latest inflation data could influence the Federal Reserve’s timing on cutting interest rates, which are currently at their highest level in over 20 years.
With inputs from agencies
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