The stock markets in the United States ended the trading session on the red today driven by the decline of the stock of companies in the energy sector. Investors are also cautious as they monitor geopolitical developments.
In a telephone interview with Bloomberg, Terry Sandven, the chief equity strategist at U.S. Bank Wealth Management commented,” We’re in a zone of ambivalence with investors maintaining a cautious bias. He added, “Equities appear to be navigating the dog days of summer with markets being driven more by geopolitical events than economic and company fundamentals.”
Russia is sending a humanitarian mission to the eastern Ukraine. The Ukranian government said it would not allow the current structure of the humanitarian aid to enter its territory because it does not comply with international rules. On the other hand, the United States government warned Russian President Vladimir Putin not to use the aid as a cover to send troops in Ukraine.
Meanwhile, Israel and Palestine is still far from reaching a long-term agreement regarding the Gaza Strip.
In Germany, the ZEW Center reported that investors’confidence declined due to concern regarding the conflict in Ukraine and slow recovery in the euro-ares, which negatively impacted outlook for the largest economies in the Europe.
Walter Tood, the chief investment officer at Greenwood Capital Associates opined, “We have some bad news on German investor confidence and bad news from the euro zone in the long term impact the U.S. The economic data from the U.S. is very good, but if the economic situation in Europe continues to deteriorate, we’re not going be immune from that forever.
U.S. Markets
- Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA)- 16,560.54 (-0.06%)
- S&P 500- 1,933.74 (-0.16%)
- NASDAQ- 4,389.25 (-0.27%)
- Russell 2000- 1,132.56 (-0.82%)
European Markets
- EURO STOXX 50 Price EUR- 3,023.77 (-0.78%)
- FTSE 100 Index- 6,632.42 (-0.01%)
- Deutsche Borse AG German Stock Index DAX- 9,069.47 (-1.21%)
Asia-Pacific Markets
- Nikkei 225- 15,161.31 (+0.20%)
- Hong Kong Hang Seng Index- 24,689.41 (+0.18%)
- Shanghai Shenzhen CSI 300 Index- 2,357.05 (-0.35%)
Stocks in Focus
The stock price of Intercept Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:ICPT) climbed 16.59% to $276.52 per share after the company revealed positive data on the FLINT Trial for its drug designed to treat liver diseases, which overshadowed its disappointing financial and operational results.
Flower Foods, Inc. (NYSE:FLO) declined 4.55% to $19.10 per share after the company posted weak earnings for the second quarter. Flowe Foods posted earnings of $0.21 per share in $877.4 million in revenue compared with the $0.24 in earnings per share on $931.6 million in revenue estimated by Wall Street analysts.
The shares of Kate Spade & Co (NYSE:KATE) plummeted more than 25% to $29 per share despite reporting better than expected financial financial results for the second-quarter. The decline was cause by its declining margins.
