Stocks slumped at the end of the day Thursday to erase most of the day’s gains, and futures trading indicates that they’re on their way down again on Friday. It could be a delayed reaction to Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke’s testimony before Congress on Thursday that offered no strong hints that the Fed will act to stimulate the economy. Asian stocks also traded lower — the Hang Seng in Hong Kong was off about 0.9%. Investors may be feeling less sanguine about China’s recent surprise interest rate cut, as it indicates the Chinese government is growing more concerned about the economy.
The U.S. government reported that the trade gap had narrowed 4.9% in April to $50.1 billion, which was a larger gap than analysts had expected. President Obama is also expected to speak about the economy this morning at 10:15.
Dow futures slid 53 points; S&P 500 futures fell 4.4 points.
Nymex crude futures fell 3% to $82.26 per barrel.
McDonald’s (MCD) fell 2.7% after the company said the economy will hurt second quarter profits, reducing estimates by 7 to 9 cents per share.
FedEx (FDX) rose 0.8% after announcing FedEx Freight will increase shipping rates.
Centene (CNC) jumped 11% and Molina Healthcare (MOH) soared 20% after both companies were approved to manage Ohio’s Medicaid plans.
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