US stock markets in the red
Wall Street sobers after inflation data
March 14, 2024, 10:30 p.m
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Following high inflation rates, producer prices in the USA are also rising above expectations. On the stock exchanges, this puts a new damper on hopes of a turnaround in interest rates in the summer. Bitcoin has to give up its record level again.
The latest US economic data has worried investors on Wall Street. The Dow Jones Index the standard values closed 0.4 percent lower at 38,905 points in the evening. The technology-heavy one Nasdaq fell 0.3 percent to 16,128 points. The broad one S&P 500 lost 0.3 percent to 5150 points. “In some ways, today was a miniature version of all of last month, with stubborn inflation and signs of weak economic activity,” said Chris Larkin, manager at Morgan Stanley’s e-broker E*TRADE.
Producer prices in the USA rose twice as much as expected in February. This fueled new concerns among investors that the US Federal Reserve will lower interest rates later than expected in its fight against inflation. The producer prices apply ex works gate – i.e. before the products are further processed or go on sale. This allows you to provide early signals about the development of consumer prices. At the same time, the surprisingly weak US retail sales limited the losses on the stock markets. The Fed is trying to bring inflation down by tightening monetary policy, but it doesn’t want to put too much pressure on the economy.
On the futures markets, the probability of the Fed easing monetary policy at its meetings in June and July is currently estimated at a good 60 and almost 80 percent respectively. Before the data was published, it was 65 and 85 percent respectively. On the foreign exchange market, the dollar index, which measures the US currency against other important currencies, was 0.6 percent higher at 103.35 points. In return, the euro lost just as much to $1.0884.
Bitcoin cannot keep record
The Bitcoin failed to maintain its recent record of $73,803. The cryptocurrency with the highest sales lost almost four percent to around $70,380.
The forecast for the individual values was disappointing SentinelOne on the decline. The shares of the US cybersecurity specialist fell by almost 17 percent. The titles of competitors Fortinet and CrowdStrike lost around three percent and a good one percent in their wake. SentinelOne expects revenue between $812 and $818 million in 2025. According to LSEG data, analysts had expected an average of 815.78 million.
According to experts at Canadian lender Scotia Bank, Sentinel investors fear that the company is following in the footsteps of CrowdStrike, which forecast annual results above estimates and then missed them. Analysts at investment bank William Blair also pointed out that Sentinel’s weak sales forecast was due to customers’ saving habits due to the economy. This is expected to last until 2025.
Tesla under pressure
A negative analyst comment also continued Tesla to. The US car manufacturer’s shares slipped by a good four percent to $162.47. The experts at the major Swiss bank UBS had lowered the price target to $165 from the previous $225. The background is, among other things, the weakening demand for electric cars and the strength of Chinese rivals.
An upgrade, however, supported the shares of the US defense company Raytheon. The titles advanced by 1.3 percent. The experts at the major US bank Wells Fargo had set it to “Overweight” after previously “Equal Weight”. The background is the fact that the partners who have signed contracts with the group moved from planning to production. Programs to support Ukraine remain an important factor. These are likely to be increased in the near future.