Thursday was another day of losses for US stock indices. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down by 0.43%, the S&P 500 Index declined by 0.46%, and the NASDAQ Composite Index fell by 0.25%. The companies that produce consumer goods and medical supplies were hit the most.
Investor sentiment is again determined by a surge in the number of new coronavirus cases and a slowdown in economic recovery.
Statistical data has indicated a slowdown in the US economic growth. For example, this summer, consumers cut their spending and travelled and went out less than usual. At the same time, companies experienced disruption to supply and a shortage of human resources.
Still, the data from the US labor market was more optimistic: a lower unemployment rate encouraged traders. Thus, the number of new jobless claims fell by 35,000 to 310,000. At the same time, analysts predicted a higher number of 335,000. This trend has been observed since mid-July and indicates that companies value employees and want to avoid staff turnover.
Some analysts predict that US GDP has increased for the past quarter, while others lower their expectations for GDP growth.
Investors are still waiting for the Fed to signal the timelines when it is going to cut the QE program. Most experts assume that the regulator may start cutting asset purchases this year as the country's economy is still on track to recovery. However, it is still unclear whether Fed officials are ready to make this decision at the upcoming meeting this month.
Among the Dow Jones components, the biggest gains were posted by Nike Inc., Boeing Co., and JPMorgan Chase & Co. Their shares rose by 1.6%, 1.2%, and 0.4% respectively. Amgen (-2.4%), Johnson & Johnson, Merck & Co. Inc. (-2%), and 3M Co. (-1.1%) were the ones with the worst results.
On NASDAQ exchange, Lululemon Athletica gained 10.5% on the back of its second-quarter earnings growth. At the same time, the shares of Cisco Systems Inc. fell by 0.1% after analysts had downgraded their forecasts for the company. Xerox Holdings announced its move from the New York to NASDAQ stock exchange which resulted in a 0.2% increase in share prices.
China has tightened government regulation for online game platforms. The authorities will limit the time that minors can spend on gaming websites. Companies will face rigorous scrutiny and harsh penalties for failing to comply with regulatory requirements.
As a result, the securities of the largest companies in this area fell in price: NetEase Inc. lost 2.1%, Bilibili Inc. dropped by - 2.3%, and Alibaba Group Holding went down by - 2%. It should be noted that the Hang Seng Index also showed a significant decrease on Thursday of 2.3%, while the European composite index STOXX Europe 600 declined by only 0.1%.