The final session results indicate that the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 0.43%, while the Nasdaq (+0.09%) and the broad S&P 500 (+0.27%) reached new closing records.
“There is good news today, as the jobless claims numbers are decent,” stated Steve Sosnick from Interactive Brokers to Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Initial jobless claims declined compared to last week by 5,000, outperforming the consensus projections from analysts at Bloomberg, who expected an increase.
“The main takeaway from the report continues to be that companies have been slow to lay off employees, but it has become more challenging to find a job after losing one,” noted analysts at Briefing.com.
In their view, “this dynamic reflects a slowing labor market but not a truly weak one.”
Meanwhile, “it’s quite clear that the market doesn’t want to focus on tariff news until they are actually enforced,” pointed out Steve Sosnick.
“As long as there is a plausible reason for tariffs to be renegotiated, delayed, or modified, the market will not react,” asserted the analyst.
Since Monday, around twenty countries received a letter from Washington announcing the tariffs applicable to them from August 1.
“Investors are relying on American companies and the economic calendar to justify their optimism,” explained José Torres of Interactive Brokers.
Market participants are particularly awaiting consumer (CPI) and producer (PPI) inflation numbers next week. A new consumer confidence indicator will also be released.
In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury remained unchanged at 4.34%, compared with 4.33% at the previous day’s close.
In business news, U.S. breakfast cereal group WK Kellogg (Corn Flakes, Froot Loops, Rice Krispies, All-Bran, etc.) surged (+30.63% to $22.86) following its acquisition announcement by Italian food giant Ferrero (Kinder, Nutella, etc.).
Delta Air Lines (+11.99% to $56.78) was in high demand after reporting better-than-expected second-quarter results, including a market-leading earnings per share of $2.10.
Investors also welcomed Delta’s new forecast, which had been suspended a few months earlier due to the “slower growth environment.”
Mining company MP Materials (+50.62% to $45.23) soared after announcing that the U.S. Department of Defense would become its largest shareholder through a $400 million stake.
MP Materials owns the only active rare earth mine on U.S. soil and claims to be the second largest in the world.
