US stock markets weakened on Friday with the Dow Jones losing 300 points to fall 0.9% and both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq down 0.8%.
The detractors were widespread with both the energy and materials sectors taking a hit after an important sentiment index came in far weaker than expected.
Dovish comments from the Federal Reserve combined with the growing Delta outbreak have also sent bond yields below 1.3% once again.
The result was the first negative week in a month, the Dow most resilient falling just 0.5%, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq down 1% and 1.9%, respectively, pulled down by the likes of Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN).
The small-cap Russell 2000 Index, however, was the worst-performing down 5.2% over the week, the worst since October 2020.
The loosening of restrictions saw an unexpected jump in retail sales in June, up 0.6% or 1.3% when volatile vehicle sales are included.
Meanwhile, Australian-founded gym chain F45 listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker FXLV, with an eye-watering valuation of over US$2 billion.
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Investment banking reigns supreme
Sticking with the Aussie theme, the James Gorman-led Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) delivered another near-record result, with second-quarter profit of US$3.48 billion as investment banking revenue jumped 44% in the quarter.
This offset a similar decline in fixed income trading, with professional investors moving away from bond markets, whilst wealth management also delivered a record result.
So far 85% of S&P 500 companies have beaten expectations, the highest since 2008.
US stock market movers
Here’s how other popular US stocks closed out the week on Friday.
- Moderna (NASDAQ: MRNA) up 10.3%
- Cintas (NASDAQ: CTAS) up 4.6%
- State Street (NYSE: STT) up 2.9%
- NVIDIA (NASDAQ: NVDA) down 4.2%
- Trip.com (NASDAQ: TCOM) down 4.4%
- Carnival Corp (NYSE: CCL) down 4.7%
Back home on the ASX, the S&P/ASX 200 (ASX: XJO) is set to follow US markets lower at the open on Monday. For all the latest, check out Rask Media’s ASX 200 morning report.
