Tuesday October 25th

U.S. stock markets index futures fell Tuesday as investors looked ahead to big technology earnings for further clues into the health of the U.S. economy. Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 187 points, or 0.6%. S&P 500 futures dipped 0.4%, while Nasdaq 100 futures were down 0.2%. Shares of Amazon slipped slightly in premarket trading on reports of a hiring freeze. JetBlue and Xerox were among stocks that were down before the bell after reporting earnings that did not beat expectations. Coca-Cola and General Motors were among those that jumped up on better-than-expected reports. Tuesday’s moves came after another strong day for stocks. The Dow rose 417.06 points, or 1.3%, on Monday. The Nasdaq Composite finished 0.9% higher and the S&P 500 added roughly 1.2%, with nine of 11 sectors finishing higher, led by health care. “The market has become accustomed to the real price volatility, almost desensitized to it,” said Jeff O’Connor, head of market structure in the Americas for Liquidnet. “And the wild moves are making trading conditions that much more difficult.” Investors this week remain laser-focused on earnings from the biggest technology companies, with reports from Alphabet and Microsoft due Tuesday. Meta Platforms reports Wednesday, followed by Amazon and Apple on Thursday. Given their sheer size and market capitalization, any moves are likely to drive the market going forward. So far this season, companies have proven they may be faring better than anticipated. That’s due in part to the fact that analysts’ earnings estimates have come down in recent months as companies faced foreign exchange headwinds and other growth concerns. This could set up stocks for rallies on potentially better-than-feared outcomes. ″’Earnings really have come down quite a bit,” said Sam Stovall, chief investment strategist at CFRA. “Maybe investors are happy because it’s up 2% and not down 2% but we’ve also been seeing reductions in 2023 forecasts. This bear market probably has to play itself out even if we do get a near-term bear market rally.” UPS, GE, Coca-Cola all reported earnings before the bell Tuesday. Chipotle Mexican Grill and Texas Instruments will report after the Tuesday close. On the economic data front, S&P/Case-Shiller August home prices, FHFA August home prices and October consumer confidence are slated for release Tuesday. Hong Kong stocks were volatile while mainland China markets continued to slide Tuesday, while other major Asian markets rose after Wall Street’s second straight positive session. The Hang Seng index in Hong Kong was 0.1% lower at 15,165.59 after struggling for direction earlier in the session, with heavyweight HSBC falling more than 5% after reporting a drop in profits. Hang Seng Tech index was nearly 2.96% higher. Chinese tech stocks in the U.S. and the Hang Seng index and dropped sharply to start the week with investor sentiment turning following the conclusion of the China’s party congress and the release of a slew of delayed economic data. Mainland China’s Shanghai Composite was about flat at 2,976.28, while the Shenzhen Component lost 0.512% to 10,639.82. The Nikkei 225 added 1.02% to 27,250.28 and the Topix climbed 1.06% to 1,907.14. In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 was up 0.28% at 6,798.60. South Korea’s Kospi was fractionally lower at 2,235.07, while the Kosdaq gained slightly to 688.85. Oil prices fell by more than $1 per barrel on Tuesday as bearish economic data from key global economies heightened demand fears. International benchmark Brent crude futures fell by $1.41 to $91.85 per barrel, after easing 0.3% in the previous session. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures for December delivery fell by $1.34 to $83.24 per barrel, after a previous decline of 0.6%. Gold prices eased on Tuesday as the dollar regained some ground, but bullion’s losses were capped by expectations that the U.S. central bank may hit pause on its rapid rate hike trajectory. Spot gold fell 0.3% to $1,644.56 per ounce by 1144 GMT, while U.S. gold futures slipped 0.3% to $1,648.50. Expectations of a less hawkish U.S. Federal Reserve had pressured the dollar, but the greenback is now slowly climbing back up, driving gold in the opposite direction, said Ricardo Evangelista, senior analyst at ActivTrades.