Dow pops on renewed China trade talks, strong earnings
Plans by U.S. officials to travel to China for high-level trade talks lifted the Dow Jones Industrial Average -- which nearly set its fifth record high this year -- as did strong-than-expected second-quarter results from Coca-Cola and United Technologies.
The major markets on Tuesday initially pared gains after U.S. home sales fell more than expected in June as a persistent shortage of properties pushed prices to a record high, suggesting the housing market was struggling to regain its footing since hitting a soft patch last year. The National Association of Realtors said existing home sales dropped 1.7 percent.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I:DJI | DOW JONES AVERAGES | 38003.8 | -457.12 | -1.19% |
| SP500 | S&P 500 | 5031.79 | -39.84 | -0.79% |
| I:COMP | NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX | 15540.068943 | -172.68 | -1.10% |
U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin will travel to China next week to meet and hold trade negotiations with Chinese officials, a senior government official told FOX Business.
Chinese Vice Premier Liu He and Chinese Commerce Minister Zhong Shan will attend the meetings, which are scheduled to be held in Shanghai – at the request of the Chinese delegation – and not Beijing, the official said.
On the earnings front, Coca-Cola netted profits of 63 cents per share in the three months through June, higher than analysts expected. Overall, revenue grew 6 percent to $10 billion, slightly above what Wall Street predicted.
Adjusted net income at United Technologies Corp. grew to $2.20, beating estimates of $2.05 per share, while revenue rose 17.5 percent to $19.63 billion. The Farmington, Connecticut-based firm now expects full-year profits to hit as high as $8.05 per share.
Intel gained after a report that Apple is in advanced talks to buy its smartphone-modem chip business.
Shares of Bed, Bath & Beyond reacted to news about staff reductions. The company is cutting 7 percent of corporate positions including vice president, directors and managers. As part of this realignment, Eugene A. Castagna, President and Chief Operating Officer of the Company, has departed and the role has been eliminated.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| KO | THE COCA-COLA CO. | 61.88 | +0.32 | +0.51% |
| UTX | n.a. | n.a. | n.a. | n.a. |
| INTC | INTEL CORP. | 34.95 | +0.45 | +1.30% |
| BBBY | n.a. | n.a. | n.a. | n.a. |
| BIIB | BIOGEN INC. | 200.77 | -1.22 | -0.60% |
And at Biogen, profits in the second quarter rose to $9.15 per share, significantly topping analyst expectations of $7.53 per share. The biotech firm also raised its full-year profit outlook to a high of $30.40 per share.
Meanwhile, the White House and Congress reached on Monday evening a deal to suspend the debt limit through July 2021 and increase spending caps for military and nonmilitary programs for the next two years.
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Investors also continue to brace for the Federal Reserve’s two-day meeting next week, when the central bank is widely expected to cut interest rates at least by 25 basis points.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury edged up to 2.07, and the price of crude oil climbed 1.19 percent to $56.89 per barrel.