- Stocks Trade in Narrow Range Before Economic Data: Markets Wrap
Stocks traded in a tight range as investors held off from adding more bets to their portfolios ahead of June
payrolls data from the US Thursday. Japanese shares dropped on President Donald Trump’s latest tariff threat.
Contracts for the S&P 500 edged up 0.3% while an index of Asian shares was flat – paring most of its earlier
losses. The Nikkei-225 Stock Average declined 0.2% after Trump threatened to hike tariffs on Japan and
deepened his criticism of the country for not accepting US rice exports. A gauge of the dollar edged back toward
a three-year low set Tuesday. - Dow jumps 400 points, S&P 500 closes flat to start new quarter as investors rotate out of tech
The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed on Tuesday as investors rotated out of technology stocks to kick off
the second half of 2025. Investors were also weighing the latest developments with President Donald Trump’s
giant tax and spending bill as well as comments from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. The S&P 500 inched
down 0.11% and closed at 6,198.01, while the Nasdaq Composite lost 0.82% to settle at 20,202.89. The blue
chip Dow was the outlier, gaining 400.17 points, or 0.91%, to end at 44,494.94. - Oil prices little changed as investors look ahead to OPEC+ meeting
Oil futures were little changed on Wednesday as investors are wary ahead of a meeting of major producers
this week to determine output levels for August. Brent crude was up 1 cent at $67.12 a barrel at 0124 GMT,
while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude fell 5 cents to $65.40 a barrel. Demand expectations received a boost
on Tuesday after a private-sector survey showed factory activity expanded in June in China, the world’s
biggest oil importer, analysts said. Since Iran and Israel have halted attacks on each other following their 12
day conflict, Brent has traded between a high of $69.04 a barrel and low of $66.34 since June 25, as concerns
of supply disruptions in the Middle East producing region have ebbed. - Gold prices ease ahead of U.S. data as investors weigh Fed rate stance
Gold prices edged lower on Wednesday as investors awaited U.S. payroll data and assessed Federal Reserve
Chair Jerome Powell’s cautious stance on rate cuts, although a weaker dollar helped limit losses for greenback
priced bullion. Spot gold was down 0.2% at $3,330.68 per ounce, as of 0217 GMT, while U.S. gold futures fell
0.3% to $3,340.60. The U.S. dollar index weakened to its lowest point in more than three years, making bullion
more affordable for holders of other currencies. “Gold prices are consolidating after posting the strongest gains
in two weeks. The overall trend bias continues to favor the upside for now,” said Ilya Spivak, head of global
macro at Tastylive, adding Fed policy expectations are taking center stage at the moment.
Powell reiterated that the U.S. central bank plans to “wait and learn more” about the impact of tariffs on
inflation before lowering interest rates, again setting aside U.S. President Donald Trump’s demands for
immediate and deep rate cuts. Spot silver edged down 0.1% to $36.01 per ounce. - Trump’s megabill squeaks through Senate, but House can still reject final version
The Senate passed its version of President Donald Trump’s megabill after days of tense negotiations in the
upper chamber. The House now has the reins on Trump’s domestic policy package, where questions remain
about whether enough lawmakers will vote for the package. Trump has repeatedly insisted that he wants the
bill on his desk by July 4. - US job market surprises with increased openings in May
U.S. job openings unexpectedly increased in May, but a decline in hiring added to signs that the labor market
had shifted into lower gear amid uncertainty over the Trump administration’s tariffs on imports, with a 90-day
pause on higher reciprocal duties drawing to an end. Anxiety over trade policy and ebbing labor market
momentum was underscored by a survey from the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) on Tuesday, with
manufacturers variously describing the business environment as “hellacious” and “too volatile” for long-term
procurement decisions. Economists were mostly dismissive of the surprise rise in job openings, noting that the
bulk of the increase was in the leisure and hospitality sector. “We suspect underlying demand for new workers
continues to recede amid growing signs of consumer spending fatigue,” said Sarah House, a senior economist
at Wells Fargo. Job openings, a measure of labor demand, were up 374,000 to 7.769 million by the last day of
May, the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics said in its Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, or
JOLTS report. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast 7.30 million vacancies. There were 1.07 jobs for every
unemployed person, up from 1.03 in April. - Euro zone inflation edges higher, hitting ECB’s 2% target in June
Euro zone inflation rose slightly to 2% in June, according to flash data from statistics agency Eurostat on
Tuesday, meaning consumer prices in the single currency area are now in line with the European Central Bank’s
target of 2%. Economists polled by Reuters had expected the reading to come in at 2% in the twelve months
to June. Euro zone inflation had fallen by more than expected to 1.9% in May. Core inflation, which excludes
energy, food, tobacco and alcohol prices, was unchanged at 2.3% in June. The closely watched services inflation
print picked up to 3.3% in June, after cooling significantly in May to 3.2%, down from a 4% reading in April.
Individual inflation prints released in the last week by major euro zone economies showed an easing in the
harmonized inflation rate in Germany, a small rise in France and Spain, but no change in Italy in June —
indicating that the wider euro area reading would have likely edged toward the 2% level targeted by the ECB.
That has further stoked expectations that the central bank will opt to leave its key rate, the deposit facility rate,
unchanged at 2% when it next meets in late July, before making a final 25-basis-point cut in September.
The euro picked up after the data release and was last seen trading around 0.3% higher against the dollar. The
ECB’s Chief Economist Philip Lane told CNBC on Tuesday that he believed the latest period of monetary policy
interventions to bring inflation in check is “done.” “We do think the last cycle is done, bringing inflation down
from the peak of 10[%], back to 2%, that element is over, but on a forward-looking basis we do need to stand
ready to make sure that any deviation we see does not become embedded, does not change the medium-term
picture,” Lane said in an interview with CNBC’s Annette Weisbach at the ECB’s annual forum in Sintra, Portugal.
The ECB needs to remain data-dependent but will not respond to any isolated “blip” in inflation going forward,
Lane said. - Xpeng defies China’s EV price war with steady sales as Tesla and local rivals try to keep pace
Xpeng reported an eighth-straight month of more than 30,000 monthly vehicle deliveries amid a fierce price
war in China. Xpeng’s U.S.-listed rivals, which target a more premium segment of China’s car market, saw more
modest sales momentum. BYD remained the market giant, with its passenger car sales edging higher in June
to 377,628 vehicles. - Warner Bros. Discovery shares are down as much as 5.9% Tuesday after Advance/Newhouse sold 100
million shares for about $1.1 billion via a block trade, according to a recent filing
Sold shares at a net price of $10.97, about 4.3% below where the stock closed Monday. Advance/Newhouse
holds 98.2 million shares after the sale. Stake amounts to about 4% of outstanding shares. On June 9, Warner
Bros. Discovery revealed plans for a tax-free split of its streaming and studios unit and its global networks
operation. - VusionGroup shares fall as much as 7.9% to €252.6 after the French consumer electronics firm’s
offering of 650,000 shares by holder Walmart priced at a discount
The offering was at €253 per share, while the stock closed at €274.2 on Monday. Shares are up over 42% YTD.
VusionGroup’s offering of 650,000 shares by holder Walmart priced via BNP Paribas, according to terms seen
by Bloomberg. Walmart proceeds to be around €164.45 million. Represents 3.9% of the company’s share
capital. Walmart will keep an equity stake in VusionGroup through remaining warrants. Settlement date
expected July 3. Price represents 7.73% discount to last close. 16.1m shares outstanding (8.76m-share float) as
of Aug. 7. 50-DMA EU221.80. - Hyatt Hotels shares are up 2.7% in premarket trading after Raymond James raised the recommendation
on the hotel operator to strong buy from market perform
Analyst Richard Milligan says the upgrade follows Hyatt’s announcement that it had reached an agreement to
sell the entirety of its Playa owned real estate, which removes a significant overhang on the stock. “We believe
progress on the dispositions is more relevant/important than pricing given the macro backdrop and the market
view that selling the Playa assets in this uncertain environment would be a difficult task”. PT set to $165, implies
a 18% increase from last close. H has 8 buys, 13 holds and 1 sell; avg. 12-month PT $145, according to data
compiled by Bloomberg. - Tesla shares drop on Musk, Trump feud ahead of Q2 deliveries
Tesla shares dropped 7% from Friday’s closing price of $323.63 to the $300.71 close on Tuesday ahead of the
company’s second-quarter deliveries report. Wall Street analysts are expecting Tesla to report deliveries of
around 387,000 — a 13% decline compared to deliveries of nearly 444,000 a year ago, according to a consensus
compiled by FactSet. Shares of Tesla had been rising on optimism about the company’s robotaxi pilot in Austin,
Texas until CEO Elon Musk reignited a feud with President Donald Trump over a federal spending bill. - Modelo owner Constellation Brands misses on earnings as aluminum tariffs hit profitability
Constellation Brands on Tuesday reported quarterly earnings and revenue that missed analysts’ estimates as
tariffs on aluminum weighed on its profitability. Still, the brewer reiterated its forecast for fiscal 2026, showing
confidence that it can hit its financial targets despite the weaker-than-expected quarterly performance and
higher tariffs. Shares of the company fell less than 1% in extended trading. The stock has shed more than 20%
of its value this year, fueled by concerns about how the higher duties imposed by President Donald Trump
would affect demand for its beer. Here’s what the company reported compared with what Wall Street was
expecting, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG: Earnings per share: $3.22 adjusted vs. $3.31 expected;
Revenue: $2.52 billion vs. $2.55 billion expected.,The report, which covers the three months ended May 31,
includes the start of Trump’s tariffs on canned beer imports in early April. He also hiked trade duties on
aluminum to 25% in mid-March and to 50% in early June. Both imported beer and aluminum are crucial to
Constellation’s beer business, which accounts for roughly 80% of the company’s overall revenue.
Constellation’s beer portfolio only includes Mexican imports, like Corona, Pacifico and Modelo Especial,
which overtook Bud Light as the top-selling beer brand in the U.S. two years ago. Constellation reported fiscal
first-quarter net income of $516.1 million, or $2.90 per share, down from $877 million, or $4.78 per share, a
year earlier. Constellation’s operating margin fell 150 basis points, or 1.5%, in the quarter, in part driven by
higher aluminum costs.
Menu
