Global market update: US stocks end flat as earnings offset inflation data

Global market update: Following mixed bank earnings offset cooler-than-expected inflation news that buoyed hopes for interest-rate cuts from the Federal Reserve, US stock market ended flat after trading range-bound throughout the Friday session. Dow Jones index finished 0.31 per cent lower, tech-heavy Nasdaq ended 0.02 per cent higher while S&P 500 added 0.08 per cent. Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.4-to-1 ratio on the NYSE while on Nasdaq, decliners outpaced advancers by a 1.1-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

For the week, the Dow gained 0.34 per cent, the S&P 500 rose 1.84 per cent and the Nasdaq climbed 3.09 per cent. The gains for the S&P were the biggest weekly percentage rise since mid-December and for the Nasdaq, the largest since early November.

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On Friday, data showed US producer prices index (PPI) data unexpectedly fell in December as the cost of goods such as food and diesel fuel declined, while prices for services were unchanged for a third consecutive month, in contrast to Thursday’s hotter-than-expected consumer inflation reading.

Michael Green, chief strategist at Simplify Asset Management in New York said, “The PPI tells us something a little bit different than the CPI,” adding, “It raises the probability that the Fed has the free and clear to decide to cut interest rates and the equity market doesn’t care all that much as long as rates are not pushing significantly higher.”

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Bank of America fell 1.06% after its fourth-quarter profit shrank as the lender took $3.7 billion in one-off charges, while Wells Fargo’s warning of a 7 per cent to 9 per cent drop in net interest income in 2024 sent the bank’s shares down 3.34 per cent.

But Citigroup rose 1.04 per cent after reporting a $1.8 billion fourth-quarter loss and saying it expected further job cuts.

JPMorgan Chase edged 0.73 per cent lower after reporting its best-ever annual profit and forecasting higher-than-expected interest income for 2024.

The Dow fell, largely due to a 3.37 per cent decline in UnitedHealth after the company reported higher-than-expected medical costs, accounting for about 120 points of downside pressure to the index.

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Delta Air Lines tumbled 8.97 per cent after the carrier scaled down its annual profit outlook.

Tesla lost 3.67 per cent after trimming prices of some new China models and plans to suspend most car production at its factory near Berlin.

(With inputs from Reuters)

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