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12 May 2017
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| U.S.Stocks (The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions) |
Shares of department stores sank again Friday, hurt by more evidence
that shoppers are turning away from them. A drop in Treasury yields also put
pressure on bank stocks, and the weakness helped pull the Standard & Poor's
500 index down modestly.
The S&P 500 is on pace for its first
weekly loss in the last four, though it remains close to its record.
KEEPING SCORE: The S&P 500 fell 5 points,
or 0.2 percent, to 2,389 as of 11:30 a.m. Eastern time and is on pace for a 0.4
percent dip for the week. It nevertheless remains within half a percent of its
record, set on Wednesday. The Total
Investment & Insurance Solutions
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 30
points, or 0.1 percent, to 20,889, and the Nasdaq composite fell 3 points, or
0. 1 percent, to 6,112. Small-company stocks fell more than the rest of the
market. The Russell 2000 index lost 7 points, or 0.5 percent, to 1,382.
NOSEDIVE: Nordstrom plunged $3.94, or 8.5 percent,
to $42.27, the biggest loss in the S&P 500, after a key sales figure
weakened last month by more than analysts expected. It joined a long list of
other department-store chains that have reported discouraging results recently,
as their customers increasingly head online. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions
J.C. Penney fell 50 cents, or 9.4 percent, to
$4.8 after it reported a loss for its latest quarter and weaker revenue than
analysts expected.
ELSEWHERE, WALLETS OPEN UP: Outside of
department stores, shoppers picked up their spending last month, and retail
sales rose 0.4 percent from March. That was below economists' expectations, but
it's an acceleration from weak levels registered earlier in the year. It also
may be an indication that the economy will indeed pick up from its early-year
torpor, as many economists predict.
PRICES RISE: Consumer prices also picked up a
bit of momentum in April. Prices rose 0.2 percent last month, following a drop
of 0.3 percent in March, as energy prices climbed higher. But after excluding
energy and food prices, inflation was weaker last month than economists were
expecting.
The Federal Reserve is paying close attention
to inflation as it raises interest rates off their record lows, particularly
where it is after excluding energy and food prices, which can be volatile.
YIELDS: Bond yields dropped as Treasury
prices rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 2.33 percent from 2.40
percent late Thursday. The two-year yield dropped to 1.29 percent from 1.34
percent, and the 30-year yield fell to 2.99 percent from 3.03 percent.
CASCADE EFFECT: Bank stocks have recently
been trading in the opposite direction of Treasury yields, because a pickup in
interest rates would allow banks to make bigger profits from making loans.
Financial stocks in the S&P 500 fell 0.9
percent, most among the 11 sectors that make up the index.
On the winning side were utilities and
telecom stocks, whose relatively big dividends look more attractive when bonds
are paying less in interest. The Total
Investment & Insurance Solutions
HEALTHY GAIN: U.S.-listed shares of AstraZeneca
jumped $2.58, or 8.3 percent, to $33.72 after the company reported results from
a trial of a lung-cancer treatment.
MARKETS ABROAD: In Europe, the French CAC 40
rose 0.1 percent, the German DAX gained 0.2 percent and the FTSE 100 in London
picked up 0.4 percent. In Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 0.4 percent, South
Korea's Kospi fell 0.5 percent and the Hang Seng in Hong Kong ticked up by 0.1
percent.
GROUP OF SEVEN: Finance ministers from seven
of the world's advanced economies are gathering in Italy this weekend. The
officials from Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United
States are expected to discuss ways to promote economic growth. Also on the
agenda: U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin will explain Trump's plans to
cut business taxes and regulations and outline the administration's economic
policies, including its stance on trade.
COMMODITIES: Benchmark U.S. crude oil fell 24
cents to $47.59 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, dipped 18
cents to $50.59 a barrel.
Natural gas rose 3 cents to $3.41 per 1,000
cubic feet, heating oil was close to flat at $1.49 per gallon and wholesale
gasoline rose a penny to $1.57 per gallon.
Gold rose $5.30 to $1,229.50 per ounce,
silver gained 15 cents to $16.42 per ounce and copper added a penny to $2.52
per pound. The Total Investment &
Insurance Solutions
CURRENCIES: The euro rose to $1.0920 from
$1.0866 late Thursday. The dollar slipped to 113.34 Japanese yen from 113.88
yen, and the British pound slipped to $1.2883 from $1.2890.The Total Investment & Insurance
Solutions
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