Toward the end of trading Tuesday, the Dow traded up 1.06% to 28085.22 while the NASDAQ fell 0.22% to 10,944.77. The S&P also rose, gaining 0.45% to 3,375.46.
The U.S. has the highest number of coronavirus cases and deaths in the world, reporting a total of 5,094,560 cases with around 163,460 deaths. Brazil confirmed a total of over 3,057,470 COVID-19 cases with 101,750 deaths, while India reported a total of at least 2,268,670 confirmed cases and 45,250 deaths. In total, there were at least 20,092,850 cases of COVID-19 worldwide with over 736,250 deaths, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.
Leading and Lagging Sectors
Financial shares gained 2.7% on Tuesday. Meanwhile, top gainers in the sector included MVC Capital, Inc. MVC 17.11%, up 17%, and Redwood Trust, Inc. RWT 8.49%, up 10%.
In trading on Tuesday, utilities shares fell by 1.7%.
Top Headline
SYSCO Corporation SYY 2.09% reported a narrower-than-expected loss for its second quarter.
Sysco posted a Q2 loss of $0.29 per share, narrower than analysts’ estimates for a loss of $0.30 per share. The company reported quarterly sales of $8.90 billion, missing expectations of $9.52 billion.
Equities Trading UP
Pfenex Inc. PFNX 66.34% shares shot up 67% to $12.76 after the company announced it will be acquired by Ligand for $12 per share in cash.
Shares of Oxbridge Re Holdings Limited OXBR 58.55% got a boost, shooting 60% to $1.87 after the company swung to a profit in the second quarter. Oxbridge Re Holdings posted Q2 earnings of $0.03 per share, versus a year-ago loss of $0.04 per share.
Kforce Inc. KFRC 24.43% shares were also up, gaining 30% to $41.32 after the company reported better-than-expected Q2 results and also issued strong Q3 guidance.
Equities Trading DOWN
Fulcrum Therapeutics Inc FULC 47.43% shares tumbled 46% to $9.26 after the company posted a Q2 loss of $0.66 per share and announced interim analysis data from its ReDUX4 trial in facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy.
Shares of Mesoblast limited MESO 34.8% were down 33% to $11.68. The company has an FDA Advisory Committee meeting on August 13th to review data supporting its Biologics License Application for approval of RYONCIL for children.
Fennec Pharmaceuticals Inc FENC 35.4% was down, falling 35% to $6.61 after the company announced it has received a response from the FDA for PEDMARK NDA indicating identified deficiencies with the facility of the drug product manufacturer, which require resolution prior to PEDMARK approval.
Commodities
In commodity news, oil traded up 0.3% to $42.07, while gold traded down 4.5% to $1,947.00.
Silver traded down 10.2% Tuesday to $26.285, while copper rose 0.6% to $2.8785.
Euro zone
European shares closed higher today. The eurozone’s STOXX 600 rose 1.68%, the Spanish Ibex Index rose 2.97%, while Italy’s FTSE MIB Index gained 2.84%. Meanwhile, the German DAX 30 gained 2.04%, French CAC 40 rose 2.41% and UK shares rose 1.71%.
Economics
The NFIB small business optimism index declined to 98.8 in July versus 100.6 in the prior month.
The Producer Price Index increased 0.6% in July following a 0.2% drop in June.
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Editors’ Picks
EUR/USD risks a deeper drop below 1.1750
EUR/USD keeps its vacillating mood in place as the the NA session drwas to a close on Tuesday, hovering below the 1.1800 hurdle amid acceptable gains in the US Dollar. In the meantime, market participants and the FX galaxy are expected to closely follow President Trump’s SOTU speech around 2AM GMT.
GBP/USD regains 1.3500 and above
GBP/USD extends its advance for the third day in a row on Tuesday, this time retesting the area beyond the 1.3500 hurdle. Cable’s uptick comes despite decent gains in the Greenback and the dovish message from the BoE’s Bailey at the UK Parliament.
USD/JPY climbs to 156.00 area as markets doubt BoJ rate hikes
USD/JPY catches a fresh bid wave and challenges the 156.00 region on Tuesday. The pair rallies as the Japanese Yen (JPY) falls hard on reports that Japan's PM Takaichi voiced concerns to BoJ Governor Ueda on interest rate hikes.
Editors’ Picks
AUD/USD remains capped by 0.7100, focus on inflation data
AUD/USD shrugs off Monday’s pullback and regains composure on Tuesday, coming close to the 0.7070 region despite the Greenback trading with modest gains ahead of the opening bell in Asia. In the meantime, the Aussie Dollar should remain under scrutiny in light of the publication of critical inflation data in Oz early on Wednesday.
EUR/USD risks a deeper drop below 1.1750
EUR/USD keeps its vacillating mood in place as the the NA session drwas to a close on Tuesday, hovering below the 1.1800 hurdle amid acceptable gains in the US Dollar. In the meantime, market participants and the FX galaxy are expected to closely follow President Trump’s SOTU speech around 2AM GMT.
Gold appears offered around $5,150
Gold is giving back a good portion of the recent multi-day rally, receding to the $5,150 zone per troy ounce amid the decent bounce in the US Dollar and mixed US Treasuty yields. In the meantime, markets’ attention remain on upcoming comments from Fed speakers.
Ripple’s DeFi shift in focus: Navigating XRPL EVM sidechain growth, XRPFi migration and liquidity
Ripple (XRP) has continued to trade under pressure, extending its decline by approximately 63% from the record high of $3.66 in July. The remittance token is trading above support at $1.35, while its upside appears limited by key supply zones, starting with $1.40, at the time of writing on Tuesday.
The Citrini report: How a debatable AI narrative can shake Wall Street Premium
That AI-related headline alone was enough to rattle investors.US stocks slid sharply on Monday after a widely circulated Citrini Research memo outlined a hypothetical “2028 Global Intelligence Crisis”, warning that rapid AI adoption could push US unemployment into double digits as early as by mid-2028.
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