[Asia Economy New York=Correspondent Baek Jong-min] The New York stock market closed lower across the board due to disappointing economic indicators from China and the United States.
On the 16th (local time), the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 135.39 points (0.5%) to close at 26,734.71, the S&P 500 index dropped 10.99 points (0.34%) to 3,215.57, and the Nasdaq index declined 76.66 points (0.73%) to 10,473.83.
The major indices on the New York stock market showed weakness reflecting concerns over the U.S. economic indicators released before the opening, as well as the Chinese stock market which had plunged 4.5% despite GDP recovery due to weak consumer indicators.
The U.S. economic indicators released that day were also negative. Weekly initial jobless claims decreased by 10,000 from the previous week to 1.3 million, which was higher than the expected 1.25 million. New jobless claims have exceeded 1 million for 17 consecutive weeks.
Retail sales results were favorable but still carried concerns. June retail sales increased by 7.5% compared to the previous month, surpassing the market expectation of a 5.2% increase, and showed a 1% increase compared to the same period last year.
However, there is a prevailing view that with the recent resurgence of COVID-19 and strengthened lockdown measures, as well as the expiration of expanded unemployment benefits within this month, rapid consumption growth will be difficult from next month onward. Reflecting this, the White House stated that the next stimulus package should include a payroll tax cut.
Following Tuesday’s record of over 67,000 confirmed cases, the previous day also recorded around 66,000 daily cases, pushing the cumulative number of COVID-19 infections in the U.S. past 3.5 million, increasing the possibility of delays in economic reopening.
The Wall Street Journal reported that the Trump administration is pushing to restrict visa issuance to members of the Chinese Communist Party, spreading concerns over U.S.-China tensions, which was also negative. However, the Journal noted that the likelihood of President Trump approving such measures is low.
Major companies’ Q2 earnings were better than expected. Johnson & Johnson, Morgan Stanley, and Bank of America (BOA), which announced earnings that day, posted results exceeding expectations. Twitter’s stock price fell only 1% despite a large-scale hacking incident.
West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil closed down 1.1% ($0.45) at $40.75 per barrel, and gold fell 0.7% ($13.50) to close at $1,800.30 per ounce.
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