Basecamp co-founder and CTO David Heinemeier Hansson argues it’s up to Congress to highlight how important antitrust issues and a fair marketplace are for Big Tech.
U.S. equity markets held small gains on Wednesday as investors awaited the Federal Reserve’s latest economic assessment and digested another healthy dose of corporate earnings.
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The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 20 points, or 0.08 percent, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.37 percent and 0.66 percent, respectively.
With the Fed expected to hold interest rates near zero, investors will be paying attention to the central bank’s appraisal of the U.S. economy and keying in to any clues as to how long the low rates may last. The central bank will share the results of its meeting at 2 p.m. ET.
On Capitol Hill, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, Apple CEO Tim Cook, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Google CEO Sundar Pichai will testify at an antitrust hearing.
Dow heavyweight Boeing Co. reported a larger than expected quarterly loss despite commercial airplane sales sinking 65 percent.
Elsewhere on the earnings front, General Motors Co. steered to a loss as dealers and factories were forced to temporarily close their doors amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Starbucks Corp. global same-store sales tumbled 40 percent from a year ago, resulting in a $678.4 million quarterly loss. The company said 99 percent of locations in China and 96 percent of U.S. stores have reopened for business.
Meanwhile, computer chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices Inc. reported mixed top- and bottom-line results, and raised its revenue guidance for the remainder of the year.
General Electric Co. revenue edged out expectations, but earnings fell short. While the company spent $2.1 billion more on industrial operating expenses than it brought in, the deficit was smaller than expected.
Blue Apron Holdings, Inc. achieved a $1.1 million profit as more Americans cooked at home during the pandemic. The meal-kit maker forecast net sales growth for the rest of 2020.
Outside of earnings news, Spirit Airlines Inc. is preparing to tell unions on Friday that 20 percent to 30 percent of workers could be furloughed in October once the government stimulus package expires, according to an internal memo seen by Reuters.
Victoria’s Secret owner L Brands Inc. plans to cut 850 jobs, or 15 percent of its corporate workforce, in an effort to reduce annualized costs by $400 million.
Eastman Kodak Co. continued to surge after gaining 203 percent on Tuesday when it announced a pivot into the pharmaceutical business after receiving a $765 million government loan to produce generic drugs.
Looking at commodities, gold climbed $7.60 to $1,952.20 an ounce and West Texas Intermediate crude oil gained 37 cents to $41.41 a barrel.
U.S. Treasurys were little changed with the yield on the 10-year note near 0.58 percent.
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In Europe, France’s CAC traded up 0.86 percent, Britain’s FTSE gained 0.29 percent and Germany’s DAX was higher by 0.08 percent.
Asian markets finished mixed, with China’s Shanghai Composite surging 2.06 percent and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng adding 0.45 percent after second-quarter GDP contracted by 9 percent, worse than the 8.3 percent drop that was expected. Japan’s Nikkei fell 1.15 percent.
