US stocks close mostly higher
U.S. stocks closed mostly higher Tuesday, as tech shares boosted the Nasdaq Composite and the S&P 500, but worries about the effect on earnings of a protracted U.S.-China trade dispute weighed on the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
Wall Street investors also expect the Federal Reserve to forgo an interest rate cut.
Fed Chairman Jerome Powell will present his semi-annual testimony to the Congress on Wednesday and Thursday. His appearance will give investors an opportunity to gauge near-term monetary policy thinking. Also, the Fed will release the central bank's June meeting minutes on Wednesday.
Top U.S. and Chinese officials are expected to speak this week in an attempt to jump-start stalled trade negotiations between the two nations, but many of the same tensions that undermined talks previously remain.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury edged up to 2.06 percent.
Crude oil prices rose: U.S. benchmark crude oil West Texas Intermediate climbed 22 cents to $57.88 per barrel.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I:DJI | DOW JONES AVERAGES | 38085.8 | -375.12 | -0.98% |
| SP500 | S&P 500 | 5048.42 | -23.21 | -0.46% |
| I:COMP | NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX | 15611.759799 | -100.99 | -0.64% |
Stocks with exposure to China traded lower including 3M, Boeing and Caterpillar.
PepsiCo reported better-than-expected profit and revenue as the company continues its shift to healthier snacks and drinks under a new CEO.
Gains in tech titans such as Amazon.com, Facebook and Netflix kept the Nasdaq positive through the day.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MMM | 3M CO. | 91.41 | -0.61 | -0.66% |
| BA | THE BOEING CO. | 166.81 | +2.48 | +1.51% |
| CAT | CATERPILLAR INC. | 338.24 | -25.10 | -6.91% |
| PEP | PEPSICO INC. | 176.68 | -0.73 | -0.41% |
After rising for four months, confidence in the economy by small business owners declined in June.
The Small Business Optimism Index had a June reading of 103.3, down 1.7 points from the prior month, according to the National Federation of Independent Business.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AMZN | AMAZON.COM INC. | 173.67 | -2.92 | -1.65% |
| FB | n.a. | n.a. | n.a. | n.a. |
| NFLX | NETFLIX INC. | 564.80 | +9.68 | +1.74% |
Gold prices climbed fractionally to $1,400.50 per ounce.
In Asian markets on Tuesday, China's Shanghai Composite closed down 0.2 percent, Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 0.8 percent and Japan's Nikkei added 0.14 percent.
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European markets ended the day lower. London's FTSE is slid 0.2 percent, Germany's DAX dropped 0.9 percent and France's CAC was off by 0.3 percent.