(New York) The New York Stock Exchange stood still on Wednesday, ending in scattered order around balance, at the end of a session without catalytic elements.
The Dow Jones index lost 0.12% to 34,112.27 points, the technology-dominated NASDAQ gained 0.08% to 13,650.41 points. THE
“Last week we observed a nice jump” in the stock market “but this week we are waiting for a catalyst to continue this momentum or not and we don’t see anything coming,” commented Art Hogan of B. Riley Wealth Management.
Several members of the Federal Reserve (Fed) spoke on Wednesday.
Among them, a governor of the Fed, Lisa Cook, recalled during her speech at the “Financial System Conference” 2023 in Dublin that a worsening of global geopolitical tensions, in particular those involving Russia, the Middle East and China, could have negative repercussions on global markets.
Escalating tensions “could lead to weaker economic activity” and fuel inflationary pressures, she said.
On the market, after being brilliantly praised in the first part of the session, the electric car manufacturer Rivian finally concluded down 2.41%.
The electric truck maker revealed better-than-expected third-quarter results and raised its production forecast for the full year.
Tesla’s smaller rival delivered more than 15,500 vehicles during the period, more than double the same time last year for sales of $1.33 billion.
The loss remains impressive at $1.37 billion, but has been reduced by 20%. The group has raised its production target to a single figure of between 52,000 and 54,000 vehicles for the year.
Aerospace supplier Spirit Aerosystems, a subcontractor to Boeing in particular, nosedived, falling 6.34%. He announced share issues, but also debt to raise funds.
Spirit Aerosystems, which notably manufactures the fuselages of several aircraft models, recently had a series of problems with defective parts which slowed down assemblies at Boeing.
Warner Bros. Studios Discovery fell 19.04% to $9.40. The group, whose assets include the channels CNN, TNT, HBO, has suffered a decline in its subscribers to streaming video services. Its overall loss stood at $417 million compared to a negative result of $2.3 billion the year before.
Disney, which concluded stable (-0.05% to 84.55 dollars), recovered in electronic exchanges after closing (2.52%). The entertainment giant said when announcing its quarterly results that its Disney streaming service had gained 7 million subscribers. Disney also expanded its cost-cutting plan.
Space tourism company Virgin Galactic lost altitude (-10.34%). The group has notified its employees that it will reduce its workforce. Details on the extent of this restructuring should be known on Wednesday.
The Toronto Stock Exchange closed lower on Wednesday, pulled down by the energy sector and the decline in the price of crude oil, while the major American indices finished in disarray.
The composite index S
As the end of a very volatile year for the markets approaches, investors remain uncertain about 2024, said Mona Heidari, financial advisor at BlueShore Financial.
“We still don’t know if we’re heading into a recession or if we’re going to have a soft landing,” she said.
Inflation, which is still too high, and interest rates have been the two main points of attention for investors this year, she continued.
“I think they will stay at the forefront for a while. »
Some economic data points to a recession, such as high household debt, while other reports argue for a soft landing, such as the resilience of the labor market, Heidari said.
However, one thing remains certain: the fight against inflation is not over. Central banks have made it clear that they intend to keep their policy rates high for as long as necessary to curb price growth.
Amid all the uncertainty, investors have turned to less risky investments, such as inflation-indexed bonds, guaranteed investment certificates and commodities, Heidari noted.
“A lot of people are sitting on the sidelines and waiting to see what happens next year. »
In the foreign exchange market, the Canadian dollar traded at an average rate of 72.48 US cents, down from 72.67 US cents on Tuesday.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, the price of crude oil fell US$2.04 to US$75.33 per barrel, while natural gas lost 3 US cents to US$3.11 per barrel. million BTUs.
The price of gold erased US$15.70 to US$1,957.80 per ounce and that of copper depreciated by US$4 cents to US$3.64 per pound.
