NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks edged lower in afternoon trading on Wall Street Thursday as oil prices gained ground and a wide variety of companies reported their latest financial results.
The S&P 500 fell 0.2% and is hovering just below the record it set on Tuesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 363 points, or 0.7%, as of 12:27 p.m. Eastern time, and is also hovering below its record. The Nasdaq composite fell 0.2%.
Wall Street opened the week soaring
higher and notching records, but has calmed over the last two days. Companies from a mix of sectors reported their latest financial results, adding to an already busy round of corporate earnings reports.
“August is off to an extremely strong start, but there is still plenty of August left to go, and August is typically a volatile month for stocks,” said Clark Bellin, president and chief investment officer at Bellwether Wealth, in a research note.
Warner Bros. Discovery rose 1.5% after reporting earnings that came in ahead of what investors were expecting. Molson Coors rose 1% after also reporting encouraging financial results.
On the losing end, Honeywell Aerospace fell 19.2% after turning in results that fell well short of forecasts. AppLovin slumped 19.6% after the digital ad company reported mixed financial results for its most recent quarter.
Strong overall profits from companies has helped allay concerns on Wall Street about the market being overpriced. Roughly 85% of companies in the S&P 500 have reported their results and overall earnings growth for the period is shaping up to be the strongest since 2021.
Outside of earnings, SpaceX rose 0.6%. More than 911 million SpaceX shares held by early investors and employees become eligible for sale on Thursday as a lockup period for the stock expires. That is more than double the shares that were initially offered to the public for sale during the initial public offering for Elon Musk’s company. SpaceX initially soared above the share’s $150 asking price, making Musk the world’s first trillionaire. They have since tumbled about 25%, and were trading around $110.
Oil prices gained ground as uncertainty remains over the U.S. war with Iran that has stifled the global flow of oil. The price of Brent crude, the international standard, rose 4.3% to $82.88.
Iran has said that it is close to a deal with Oman for reopening the Strait of Hormuz. President Donald Trump has also previously said a deal is close, but the conflict has had many starts and stops over the last five months.
A fifth of the world's traded oil and natural gas once passed through the Strait of Hormuz. Oil prices surged as high as $113 during the conflict and higher prices have added more heat to inflation by raising the price of gasoline and raising costs for shipping.
The rate of inflation is stuck above 3% and higher costs have been squeezing businesses and households, while threatening to crimp broader economic growth. The U.S. economy expanded at a sluggish 1.5% pace during the second quarter. Households are still spending and the jobs market remains resilient, but worries linger for both areas of the economy.
Higher gas prices and added costs for shipping goods could prompt households to shift more spending toward necessities. That could hurt businesses focusing on nonessential items and services for many people, such as travel and entertainment.
Employment remains strong, but growth has been easing. A weekly report on Thursday showed that the number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits rose last week, though layoffs remain in the historically healthy range of the past few years. Employers pulled back on hiring in June, adding only 57,000 jobs. The latest monthly jobs report, for July, will be released on Friday.
Worries about inflation and the jobs market have prompted the Federal Reserve to hold its benchmark interest rate steady. Stubborn inflation, though, is nudging the central bank toward raising interest rates before the end of the year in order to help tame inflation. Raising rates, though, could also slow economic growth while weighing down prices for stocks and other investments.
Treasury yields rose in the bond market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 4.67% from 4.63% late Wednesday.
European markets were mostly higher, and Asian markets closed mostly lower overnight.
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Associated Press writers Elaine Kurtenbach and Hyung-jin Kim contributed to this report.
