The following are the key news items that investors should be aware of before beginning their trading day:
1. Making a list
Prior to the week’s last trading session, U.S. stock futures fell Friday morning due to unsatisfactory earnings reports from Intel (which fell 11% premarket) and other companies, undermining the positive momentum of the week. In the last four days, the Dow Jones Industrial Average has increased by 0.5% and the S&P 500 by 1.1%. Until Thursday’s closing, the Nasdaq Composite had gained 1.3%, outperforming the other two. Get real-time market updates.
2. Age of growth
Though not this wonderful, we knew the economy was doing well. In the fourth quarter, the U.S. GDP grew at an annualised rate of 3.3%, significantly exceeding estimates of 2% growth. In contrast to its 1.9% growth in 2022, the U.S. economy expanded at an annualised rate of 2.5% over the entire year of 2023. Economists had predicted little to no increases in 2023 at the beginning of the year. The economy is consistently surpassing economists, and this year has been like Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robots, according to Dan North, senior economist at Allianz Trade Americas.
3. Extended incisions
Corporate America is still seeing a wave of job losses. Microsoft, Levi’s, and Paramount announced their plans to reduce staff on Thursday. 1,900 employees of Microsoft’s gaming division will be let off. Up to 15% of Levi’s global workforce would be let go, the company announced. While not disclosing the extent of the cuts, Paramount stated in an internal memo that it needed to “be leaner” and “spend less.” As firms seem to be catching up to profit demands, Thursday’s statements are simply the most recent in a series of similar initiatives.
4. FTC tackles AI
The FTC is delving deeper into artificial intelligence, revealing that it is investigating the “investments and partnerships being formed” of the industry’s major players, Amazon, Alphabet, Microsoft, Anthropic, and OpenAI.
5. Teslump
Following a stern warning on 2024 demand in the company’s fourth-quarter financial report, Tesla’s shares dropped 12% on Thursday. The plunge to roughly $182 per share resulted in the worst day for Tesla stock in more than a year, but it also provided a welcome profit for those who had been betting against the firm. Before the company’s earnings announcement on Wednesday, short sellers of Tesla profited over $2 billion, according to financial analytics firm Ortex Media.
Source (CNBC)
