The US stock market is consolidating after a two-day rally.
In the first half of the trading session on Friday, September 24, the US stock market was slightly red, consolidating after a two-day rally. The best dynamics among the S&P 500 sectors were shown by energy and finance, and the worst – by real estate and IT.
S&P 500 – 4445 p. (-0.07%), from the beginning. + 18.28%, Dow – 34,725 p. (-0.11%), from the beginning. year + 13.25%, Nasdaq – 14 985 p. (-0.45%), from the beginning. years + 16.27%.
Shares of troubled Chinese developer China Evergrande lost 11.6% in Hong Kong this morning. According to the Wall Street Journal, foreign investors have not received from the company a coupon payment in the amount of $ 83.5 million on dollar bonds with a par value of $ 2.03 billion, which was supposed to pass on Thursday, September 23. However, Evergrande may do so within a 30-day grace period, after which the company’s creditors under these obligations will have the right to demand that it be declared insolvent.
Against the backdrop of these events, the Chinese authorities have tightened supervision of Evergrande bank accounts to ensure the safety of funds intended for implementing construction projects and not allow the company’s creditors to foreclose on them. Bloomberg writes about this concerning informed sources.
Amundi Asset Management today lowered its forecast for China’s economic growth this year from 8.7% to 8.3%, citing the downturn in the country’s real estate market as one of the reasons for its decision.
Shares of Chinese companies traded on US exchanges and securities of companies related to cryptocurrencies are under intense pressure today after Beijing decides to recognize transactions carried out using such assets as illegal financial activities. This event was only the latest in a series of attacks by the Chinese authorities on private companies from various sectors of the economy, from education and IT to taxis and casinos.
Meanwhile, the buyback of shares has become one of the main drivers of growth in the US stock market. From the data released yesterday by S&P Dow Jones Indices, it follows that in the second quarter, companies from the S&P 500 bought their shares for $ 198.8 billion, which turned out to be $ 0.1 billion more than in the first quarter of 2020, when the coronavirus pandemic began. In other words, the volume of buybacks returned to pre-crisis levels.
The S&P 500 components showed mixed performance, with 6 of the 11 major sectors of the index gaining ground. The best were the sectors of energy (+ 0.73%), finance (+ 0.66%) and telecoms (+ 0.31%).
The prominent outsiders were real estate (-0.87%), healthcare (-0.47%), and IT (-0.42%).
54% of S&P 500 components rose in price, and 46% fell in price.
Salesforce.com (CRM) was up 2.1%. The company raised its revenue forecast for FY2022 and announced a strong outlook for FY2023. Salesforce is a beneficiary of the digitalization trend of business processes;
· Nike (NKE) shares lost 5.4% after downgrading the forecast for revenue growth. Several analysts downgraded the security’s ratings and target levels;
Aehr Test Systems (AEHR) shares rose 32% after raising revenue guidance for fiscal 2022;
CalAmp (CAMP) shares lost 6.6% after the publication of a weak earnings report, which, according to the company, was caused by a shortage of components;
Cryptocurrency-related stocks fell significantly: Marathon Digital (MARA: -6.9%), Bit Digital (BTBT: -6.4%), Riot Blockchain (RIOT: -7%), Coinbase (COIN: – 2.7%);
· Focus Universal (FCUV) shares gained 9.3%: Recently, the paper has on the Stocktwits traders forum.
