Should investors jump back into the market?
Money Map Press chief strategist Keith Fitz-Gerald, Kingsview Asset Management’s Scott Martin and FNC contributor Jonas Ferris discuss the current state of the stock market and how President Trump’s trade spat with China has impacted the market.
Equity futures were down triple digits overnight as data coming out of China indicated the world’s second largest economy continues to show weakness.
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Dow Jones futures were falling by 1 percent. The S&P 500 dropped 1 percent and the Nasdaq Composite declined 1.3 percent
Investors shunned equities after data showed China’s November retail sales grew at the weakest pace since 2003 and industrial output rose the least in nearly three years as domestic demand softened further.
Concerns are growing about the impact a protracted trade battle between the U.S. and China will have.
China’s Shanghai Composite closed down 1.5 percent.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng dropped 1.6 percent.
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Japan’s Nikkei finished the session down 2 percent.
London’s FTSE fells 1.1 percent, Germany’s DAX declined 1.5 percent and France’s CAC dropped 1.3 percent.
Ahead of Friday’s trading, investors will get a read on the U.S. economy, specifically involving the consumer. November retail sales numbers will be released with a big focus on the Black Friday, Cyber Monday period.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | %Chg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I:DJI | DOW JONES AVERAGES | 24597.38 | +70.11 | +0.29% |
| SP500 | S&P 500 | 2650.54 | -0.53 | -0.02% |
| I:COMP | NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX | 7070.3341 | -27.98 | -0.39% |
U.S. stocks swung between losses and gains on Thursday with the Nasdaq Composite and S&P 500 ended the session lower, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average managed to hang onto gains. Investors shifted into safer sectors such as utilities and consumer staples, while rotating out of materials and consumer discretionary names, both more dependent on U.S. economic growth which some speculate may be slowing.
Speaking exclusively to FOX Business, Former Federal Reserve Chair Alan Greenspan, raised that very point. “We have monthly data which suggests that we are slowing down, we are not going negative, but we are definitely slowing down – the rate of growth as we go into 2019 probably at a 2 to 2.5 percent pace maximum” he said during an interview with Maria Bartiromo.
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On Thursday’s economic calendar, import prices had the biggest drop in more than three years, falling 1.6 percent. Also jobless claims slipped to a near 49-year low, falling 27,000 in the past week to 206,000.
As for specific stock news, General Electric shares gained over 7 percent after JPMorgan analyst Stephen Tusa turned more positive on the embattled industrial giant after two-and-half years of being negative on the stock.
Apple said it will invest $1 billion to build a new campus in North Austin, Texas and another $10 billion for new data centers.
