Friday January 14, 2022
False start to the accounting season
Banks pull Dow Jones into the red
In the tension between ongoing interest rate concerns and the quarterly figures from US banks, Wall Street suffered a small setback at the end of the week. Some listed casino operators who have the prospect of new gaming contracts with Macau can cheer.
A botched start to the US accounting season caused long faces among investors on Friday. The big banks JPMorgan and Citigroup could not convince with their business figures. The Dow Jones index of standard values lost 0.6 percent to 35,912 points. The broader S&P 500 rose 0.1 percent to 4,662 points. The Nasdaq technology exchange index gained half a percent at 14,893 points.
“Sentiment is quite gloomy even though the fourth quarter reporting period has officially started…it seems like inflation remains the dominant concern,” said investment specialist Sam Stovall of analyst firm CFRA Research. Investors are currently concerned that the US economy could be stalled by an overly aggressive interest rate policy by the US Federal Reserve. In addition, retail sales surprisingly shrank by 1.9 percent in December.
Experts had expected spending at the level of the previous month. In November they had risen by 0.3 percent. Private consumption is the mainstay of the world’s largest economy. The massively rising prices and Corona are also depressing the mood of US consumers more than expected. The barometer for consumer sentiment fell to 68.8 points in January from 70.6 points in December.
shares of JPMorgan were the biggest loser in the Dow Index, down more than 6 percent. A weak trading business overshadowed the – actually higher than expected – quarterly profit of the money house. The Rival’s Win Citigroup collapsed by more than a quarter in the final months of last year. The papers fell by 1.25 percent. Wells Fargo posted a jump in profits of 86 percent thanks to divisional sales. The titles rose by 3.68 percent.
Market analyst Dennis Dick of trading house Bright Trading said investors may soon be turning back to the financial sector in search of value-added investments. Drivers are the increased expectations of rate hikes by the US Federal Reserve, firming bond yields and a move away from growth sectors such as technology or communication services, he added.
Stocks of US casino operators were among the biggest gainers after the Macau government gave the green light to a limited number of new licenses. Las Vegas Sands, Wynn Resorts and Melco Resorts increased by more than 16 percent. The local government of the world’s largest gambler’s paradise, Macau, only wants to issue six gaming licenses with a term of ten years. Legacy casino licenses expire in 2022.
Shares in department store operators and textile companies, on the other hand, had to lose feathers after the weak retail data. Best Buy, Big Lots, Target, Macy’s, Kohl’s and Nordstrom lost up to 5 percent. shares of Nike, Lululemon Athletica Inc and Guess fell by up to 2.2 percent.