Dow Industrials End Session Unchanged
November 12 2019 - 4:40PM
Dow Jones News
By Karen Langley and Caitlin Ostroff
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed unchanged for the first
time in more than five years Tuesday, hovering at its all-time
high.
President Trump's speech at the Economic Club of New York was
expected to be the highlight of the session, but he said little new
about the state of trade talks between the U.S. and China.
"They are dying to make a deal. We're the ones who are deciding
whether we want to make a deal," Mr Trump said, adding the parties
are close to a "phase one" deal.
The stock market showed little reaction during the speech but
pared some of its earlier gains as the afternoon progressed.
The blue chips were unchanged at Monday's all-time high of
27691.49. The index last ended flat on April 24, 2014, and was last
unchanged on the trading day after a record close on Jan. 18,
1994.
The S&P 500 ended the day up 4.83 points, or 0.2%, to
3091.84, its second-highest close in history. The Nasdaq Composite
gained 21.81 points, or 0.3%, to 8486.09, its 15th record close of
the year.
Investors have been particularly sensitive to trade-related
headlines in recent months and have pushed stocks higher lately as
tensions have diffused. They have also credited the Federal
Reserve's interest rate cuts for supporting stocks.
Meanwhile, the corporate earnings season was better than feared,
and data on jobs and consumer spending suggest strength in the U.S.
economy.
"We don't think we're out of the woods yet," said Matt Miskin,
co-chief investment strategist at John Hancock Investment
Management. "It does not sound like a trade deal is finalized by
any means. But the Band-Aid on this all is the Fed cutting interest
rates."
Investors will be watching closely Wednesday when Federal
Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell heads to Capitol Hill for two days
of congressional hearings. Mr. Powell has signaled that there will
be a high bar for additional rate cuts after the Fed's three rate
reductions this year.
Cyclical sectors that are closely tied to the economy, such as
the financial and industrial sectors, have been doing particularly
well lately.
"That tells me investors are not worried about recession in
2020," said Nancy Tengler, chief investment officer of Tengler
Wealth Management.
The Dow industrials traded within a range of 135 points during
the session. Of the 30 stocks in the index, 16 rose on the day,
with Walt Disney, Goldman Sachs and Home Depot making the largest
positive point contribution. The biggest laggards were Boeing,
Caterpillar and Exxon Mobil.
Corporate news drove moves in individual stocks. Shares of
Advance Auto Parts dropped $12.68, or 7.5%, to $156.14 after the
company reported lower-than-expected third-quarter sales. Rockwell
Automation climbed $18.81, or 10%, to $198.01 after the
Milwaukee-based industrial technology company beat forecasts for
its adjusted profit.
With more than 90% of S&P 500 companies having reported
third-quarter earnings, about three-quarters have beaten
expectations, slightly above the five-year average of 72%,
according to FactSet. Earnings from companies that have reported
have dropped 2.3% from a year earlier.
In other corporate news, shares of Portland-based brewing
company Craft Brew Alliance more than doubled after Anheuser-Busch
offered to buy the remaining shares of the company Monday.
The yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury was 1.909%, down from
1.930% Friday. Bond markets were closed Monday. Yields fall when
prices rise.
In Europe, the Stoxx Europe 600 rose 0.4% and the U.K.'s FTSE
100 gained 0.5%. Stocks traded up in Asia, where the Hang Seng rose
0.5% amid ongoing pro-democracy demonstrations. The Shanghai
Composite gained 0.2% and Japan's Nikkei 225 climbed 0.8%.
Write to Karen Langley at karen.langley@wsj.com and Caitlin
Ostroff at caitlin.ostroff@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
November 12, 2019 17:25 ET (22:25 GMT)
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