|

S&P 500 Index opens in negative territory following mixed US data

  • Wall Street's main indexes opened lower on Tuesday.
  • Retail Sales in US fell more than expected in July.
  • S&P 500 Consumer Discretionary Index is falling sharply after the opening bell.

Major equity indexes in the US opened in the negative territory on Tuesday as safe-haven flows continue to dominate the financial markets. As of writing, the S&P 500 was down 0.6% on the day at 4,453, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was losing 0.74% at 35,354 and the Nasdaq Composite was falling 0.75% at 14,684.

Earlier in the day, the data published by the US Census Bureau revealed that Retail Sales declined by 1.1% on a monthly basis in July to $617.7 billion. With this reading missing the market expectation for a contraction of 0.2%, the S&P 500 Consumer Discretionary Index fell sharply and was last seen losing 1.8% on the day.

Other data from the US revealed that Industrial Production expanded by 0.9% in July, compared to analysts' estimate for an increase of 0.4%, but this print failed to help the market sentiment improve.

The only major sector that's trading in the positive territory after the opening bell is the Healthcare Index, which was last up 0.3%.

S&P 500 chart (daily)

Author

Eren Sengezer

As an economist at heart, Eren Sengezer specializes in the assessment of the short-term and long-term impacts of macroeconomic data, central bank policies and political developments on financial assets.

More from Eren Sengezer
Share:

Editor's Picks

EUR/USD off highs, back to 1.1850

EUR/USD loses some upside momentum, returning to the 1.1850 region amid humble losses. The pair’s slight decline comes against the backdrop of a marginal advance in the US Dollar as investors continue to assess the latest US CPI readings.

GBP/USD advances to daily tops around 1.3650

GBP/USD now manages to pick up extra pace, clinching daily highs around 1.3650 and leaving behind three consecutive daily pullbacks on Friday. Cable’s improved sentiment comes on the back of the inconclusive price action of the Greenback, while recent hawkish comments from the BoE’s Pill also collaborates with the uptick.

Gold surpasses $5,000/oz, daily highs

Gold is reclaiming part of the ground lost on Wednesday’s marked decline, as bargain-hunters keep piling up and lifting prices past the key $5,000 per troy ounce. The yellow metal’s upside is also propped up by the lack of clear direction around the US Dollar post-US CPI release.

Crypto Today: Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP in choppy price action, weighed down by falling institutional interest 

Bitcoin's upside remains largely constrained amid weak technicals and declining institutional interest. Ethereum trades sideways above $1,900 support with the upside capped below $2,000 amid ETF outflows.

Week ahead – Data blitz, Fed Minutes and RBNZ decision in the spotlight

US GDP and PCE inflation are main highlights, plus the Fed minutes. UK and Japan have busy calendars too with focus on CPI. Flash PMIs for February will also be doing the rounds. RBNZ meets, is unlikely to follow RBA’s hawkish path.

Ripple Price Forecast: XRP potential bottom could be in sight

Ripple edges up above the intraday low of $1.35 at the time of writing on Friday amid mixed price actions across the crypto market. The remittance token failed to hold support at $1.40 the previous day, reflecting risk-off sentiment amid a decline in retail and institutional sentiment.