The three major U.S. stock indices closed lower, with UnitedHealth's disappointing earnings forecast leading to a 7.5% drop in its stock price and weighing on the Dow. Novo-Nordisk A/S plunged over 20% after its earnings reports. U.S. Treasury yields fell across the board, with the 10-year yield dropping nearly 9 basis points. The dollar fluctuated before closing up 0.3%. Bitcoin experienced a sharp reversal, briefly returning to $119,000. Trump set a new deadline for his ultimatum to Russia, causing crude oil prices to surge by more than 3%. Coking coal futures rose nearly 7% in night trading, while coke futures increased by more than 5.9%.
The market is awaiting the Federal Reserve's interest rate decision and a flurry of earnings reports from major U.S. technology companies. Concerns over the high valuations of U.S. stocks overshadowed bullish trade news, leading to a decline in the three major U.S. indices, with the S&P 500 Index ending its six-day rally. Bonds and the dollar both rose. President Trump set a new deadline for Russia, causing crude oil prices to surge, with U.S. crude briefly returning to the $70 per barrel mark.
In early trading, the three major U.S. indices opened higher, but investors are waiting for the Federal Reserve's interest rate decision and a series of earnings reports from large U.S. technology companies. The Nasdaq Index rose nearly 0.6% before retreating. UnitedHealth's disappointing earnings forecast led to a drop in its stock price, dragging down the Dow Jones.
Domestic futures night trading saw almost all contracts rise, with coking coal closing up 6.99%, coke up 5.92%, glass up 5.84%, soda ash up 4.6%, and hot-rolled coil up 2.63%.
During midday trading, according to reports from CCTV and Xinhua News Agency, China and the U.S. will continue to push for the extension by 90 days of the 24% tariff suspension and corresponding countermeasures. This bullish trade news provided a short-term boost to U.S. stocks, but the market remains cautious, with the three major U.S. indices still in negative territory.
According to Wall Street Watch, on July 29, local time, President Trump reiterated that the deadline for Russia to reach a ceasefire agreement in Ukraine is “10 days from today,” meaning the deadline has been moved from September 2 to August 8. Crude oil prices surged by as much as 4%, with U.S. crude briefly returning to the $70 per barrel mark. Risk sentiment in U.S. stocks was further dampened, ultimately ending the S&P 500 Index's six-day rally and the Dow Jones falling more than 200 points.
On Tuesday, the three major U.S. indices closed lower. The S&P 500 Index ended its six-day rally, with UnitedHealth's disappointing earnings forecast leading to a 7.5% drop in its stock price, dragging down the Dow Jones. Novo-Nordisk A/S fell about 22% after the company lowered its full-year earnings guidance, with sales of the weight loss drug Wegovy falling short of expectations. The airline industry ETF declined more than 1.77%, leading the losses among U.S. industry ETFs.
U.S. benchmark indices:
The S&P 500 Index closed down 18.91 points, a decline of 0.30%, at 6370.86.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down 204.57 points, a decline of 0.46%, at 44632.99.
The Nasdaq Composite closed down 80.29 points, a decline of 0.38%, at 21098.29. The NASDAQ 100 Index closed down 47.97 points, a decline of 0.21%, at 23308.30.
The E-mini Russell 2000 Index closed down 0.61% at 2242.96.
The CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) closed up 6.32% at 15.98.
U.S. industry ETFs:
The Global Airlines ETF closed down 1.74%, the Internet Stocks ETF fell 0.97%, the GF CSI All-Share Index Consumer Discretionary ETF declined 0.69%, the Global Technology Index fell 0.18%, the Technology Industry ETF closed flat, the Penghua Guozheng Semiconductor Chip ETF rose 0.51%, and the Energy Sector ETF gained 0.98%.
Magnificent 7:
The Magnificent 7 Index, which tracks the seven major U.S. technology stocks, fell 0.58% to 182.42 points.
Meta Platforms closed down 2.46%, Tesla fell 1.35%, Apple dropped 1.3%, Amazon declined 0.76%, NVIDIA fell 0.70%, while Microsoft edged up 0.01%, and Google A rose 1.65%.
Semiconductor stocks:
The PHLX Semiconductor Index closed up 0.05% at 5739.79 points.
Taiwan Semiconductor's ADR fell 0.58%, while AMD gained 2.18%.
Chinese stocks:
The Nasdaq Golden Dragon China Index closed down 1.35%, at 7,550.51 points.
Among the popular Chinese stocks, Pony.ai closed down 8.52%, Kingsoft Cloud fell 8.26%, Li Auto dropped 6.20%, EHang declined 5.86%, and JD.com fell 3.01%.
Other stocks:
Eli Lilly and Co. closed down 5.59%, and Berkshire Hathaway Class B shares fell 1.07%.
UPS plunged over 10%, as the company has yet to release its annual forecast.
UnitedHealth announced disappointing earnings forecasts, causing its stock to fall 7.5% and dragging down the Dow Jones.
The Eurozone blue-chip index closed up more than 0.7%. Zuckerberg's AI glasses partner rose 6.9%, while Novo-Nordisk A/S plummeted 23%, weighing on the broader European stock market. The Danish stock market fell nearly 12%, with Novo-Nordisk A/S plunging 23%, dragging down Zealand by about 7%. The Italian banking sector rose over 2%.
Pan-European stocks:
The STOXX Europe 600 Index closed up 0.33% at 550.58 points.
The Euro STOXX 50 Index closed up 0.75% at 5377.55 points.
National indices:
The German DAX 30 Index closed up 1.03% at 24217.37 points.
The French CAC 40 Index closed up 0.72% at 7857.36 points.
The UK FTSE 100 Index closed up 0.60% at 9136.32 points.
Sectors and Individual Stocks:
Among the Eurozone blue-chip stocks, eyewear manufacturer EssilorLuxottica closed up 6.90%, and German company Rheinmetall rose 3.46%.
Among all constituents of the European STOXX 600 Index, Kone closed up 29.58%, Tele2 Group rose 27.06%, and Elisa Corporation gained 21.57%.
Editor: Jayden
