According to the financial community on November 15 (editor Niu Zhanlin), all three major U.S. stock indices fell collectively on Thursday, as Federal Reserve Chairman Powell claimed there is no rush to cut interest rates, which dampened investor optimism.

Powell stated: 'The economy is not signaling any urgency in lowering interest rates, and the current economic strength gives us the ability to make cautious decisions.'

He added that inflation is gradually approaching the Fed's 2% target, although there may occasionally be fluctuations. He reiterated the theme of 'patience', saying, 'If the data allows us to slow down the pace of interest rate cuts a bit, that seems to be a wise move.'

The CME FedWatch tool shows that although traders still bet on a 25 basis point rate cut at the Fed's December meeting, the probability has decreased from 82.5% on Wednesday to the latest 62%.

Adam Hetts, Global Head of Multi-Asset at Janus Henderson Investors, commented that Powell's hawkish remarks poured cold water on the previously very optimistic outlook for interest rate cuts; however, inflation and the labor market have not been unbalanced, which is a positive economic signal.

Before Powell's speech, data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics showed that the U.S. October PPI rose 2.4% year-on-year, with market consensus expected at 2.3%, reflecting a rebound similar to the CPI data; core PPI increased by 3.1% year-on-year, also slightly above the market expectation of 3%.

Melissa Brown, Managing Director of Investment Decision Research at SimCorp, stated that increasing evidence suggests inflation will persist above the Fed's 2% target, adding more uncertainty to the Fed's actions following the December meeting.

City Index and Forex.com analyst Fawad Razaqzada believes that although many investors seem reluctant to sell, caution is necessary. He points out that, from multiple indicators, the s&p 500 index is clearly in an overbought state, suggesting that a pullback or consolidation might occur.

Market Dynamics

As of the close, the Dow Jones fell by 207.33 points, a drop of 0.47%, ending at 43750.86 points; the Nasdaq fell by 123.07 points, a drop of 0.64%, ending at 19107.65 points; the s&p 500 index fell by 36.21 points, a drop of 0.60%, ending at 5949.17 points.

Most us industry etfs fell, with the biotechnology index etf down 2.58%, the medical industry etf, gf csi all-share index consumer discretionary etf, and internet plus-related stocks index etf down about 1.6% at most, the banks etf fell more than 0.8%, the technology industry etf fell more than 0.3%, while the semiconductor etf rose more than 0.2%, and the energy industry etf rose about 0.4%.

Most of the 11 sectors of the s&p 500 index fell, with the medical care sector down 1.2%, the consumer discretionary sector down 1.3%, the industrial sector down 1.7%, and the real estate sector down 0.93%.

Popular stocks performance

Large tech stocks were mixed, with Google A and Amazon down over 1%, Meta slightly down; Apple up over 1%, Nvidia, Microsoft, Netflix, and Intel slightly up.

The report states that as part of broader tax reform legislation, the Trump transition team is planning to eliminate the $7,500 tax credit for electric vehicles, with Tesla representatives also supporting the termination of the subsidy. This led to Rivian plummeting 14.3% and Tesla dropping 5.77%.

Vaccine manufacturers dropped across the board, with Moderna falling 5.6%, Pfizer down 2.6%, and Novavax down 7%, due to Trump's nomination of vaccine skeptic Robert F. Kennedy for the position of Secretary of Health and Human Services.

Disney's stock price increased by 6%, providing some support to the Dow. Previously, this entertainment giant announced quarterly earnings that exceeded Wall Street's expectations and provided strong guidance for the coming years.

China concept stocks fell broadly, with the Nasdaq China Golden Dragon Index closing down 1.81%. Bilibili fell over 12%, Xpeng Motors dropped over 5%, NIO decreased more than 3%, JD.com fell more than 6%, Alibaba declined over 1%, and IQiyi rose over 2%.

Company news

[Amazon launches fixed monthly fee service for treating male hair loss and other diseases.]

On Thursday, Amazon announced that it began offering fixed-rate medical services for Prime members targeting anti-aging, motion sickness prevention, eyelash growth, male hair loss, and ED. Amazon's new service helps patients save time on doctor appointments and waiting. Consumers can access private clinical consultation services around the clock without worrying about hospitals potentially issuing "sky-high bills." If medication is needed, Amazon also offers its own logistics and drug price discount service, Prime Rx. As a result, U.S. telemedicine concept stock Hims & Hers plummeted 24%, marking the largest single-day drop in the company's history.

[European Medicines Agency recommends Leqembi for the treatment of early Alzheimer's disease.]

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) decided to recommend Leqembi for the treatment of early Alzheimer's disease after reassessing its preliminary opinion. The EMA’s human medicines committee advised granting market authorization to Leqembi, jointly developed by Eisai and Biogen, for treating mild cognitive impairment or moderate dementia caused by Alzheimer's disease. The latest reevaluation concluded that in a strictly limited patient sample, the benefits of Leqembi outweigh the risks.

[Ford pays a fine of $0.165 billion due to recall requirement failure]

Ford has agreed to pay a civil penalty of $0.165 billion for failing to comply with federal recall requirements. This action was taken after an investigation found that Ford failed to promptly recall vehicles with defective rearview cameras and did not provide accurate and complete recall information. The penalty was announced by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The order includes an immediate payment of $65 million, another $55 million to be paid later, and $45 million to fulfill relevant obligations.

[US regulators plan to investigate Microsoft's cloud business]

According to reports, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will investigate Microsoft's cloud computing business for anti-competitive behavior, focusing on allegations of Microsoft abusing its market power in the productivity software market. Specific methods being investigated include raising subscription costs for departing customers, imposing high exit fees, and making Office 365 products incompatible with competitors' cloud platforms. This move indicates that the FTC, under the leadership of Chair Lina Khan, is continuing its efforts to challenge large technology companies, with a priority on combating monopolistic practices.

[BlackRock aggressively buys Apple in Q3, continues to increase holdings in the 'Magnificent Seven']

Form 13F shows that asset management giant BlackRock continued to increase its holdings in US tech's Magnificent Seven in the third quarter, increasing its holdings in Apple by 43.4 million shares, Microsoft by 7.5 million shares, Nvidia by 12.35 million shares, Amazon by 18.55 million shares, Meta by 0.98 million shares, Tesla by 4.66 million shares, and Google A+C by 6.21 million shares; it decreased holdings in Eli Lilly and Co by 1.51 million shares. Additionally, BlackRock increased its holdings in Berkshire Hathaway by 2.59 million shares. As of the end of Q3, BlackRock reported a holding market value of $4.76 trillion, up from $4.42 trillion previously.

[Buffett's latest holdings: establishing positions in pizza stocks, reducing holdings is the main theme]

Form 13F shows that Berkshire Hathaway, founded by Buffett, established new positions of 1.27 million shares in Domino's Pizza and 0.4 million shares in Pool Corp in the third quarter. As previously announced, it reduced holdings in Apple by 0.1 billion shares, bringing its holding proportion down to 26.24%. It also reduced holdings in Capital One Financial, Nu Holdings, and Charter Communications. It exited Floor & Decor and Liberty Sirius XM, and almost completely exited Ulta Beauty. Aside from a minor increase in Heico, there were no additional increases. As of the end of Q3, Berkshire Hathaway's total holding market value decreased from $280 billion to $266 billion.