Stock losses accelerated into the close on Wednesday after minutes from the Federal Reserve revealed that “most” officials still saw upside risks to inflation, while the heavy retail week continued with a grim outlook from Target (TGT).
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) was down roughly 0.5%, or 180 points, while the S&P 500 (^GSPC) was down about 0.8%. The Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) fell more than 1% for the second day in a row.
Target took center stage Wednesday morning as the retailer cut its full-year profit forecast and issued a warning about general economic malaise.
The company cited rising interest rates and the uncertainty of student loan repayments as factors that may continue to affect its bottom line. However, the stock jumped more than 3% as it revealed a jump in earnings.
In the afternoon, last month’s Federal Reserve meeting minutes showed that most officials still saw the risks of higher inflation while “two” officials didn’t want to raise interest rates in July. The central bank raised interest rates to their highest point since 2001 at that meeting.
Investors have been looking for any clues about what the Fed might do at its meeting next month. At this point, according to CME Group’s FedWatch toolNearly 90% of traders expect the bank to keep interest rates steady, which is a slight decrease from pre-record.
In other economic news, July housing starts for both single and multiple family units rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.452 million units, up 5.9% from a year ago, according to Census Bureau data released Wednesday. This pace exceeded the 1.450 million units expected by economists polled by Bloomberg.
However, the latest construction sentiment fell for the first time in August, after seven consecutive months of increases.
Popular indicators on wednesday
Target (TGT) topped Yahoo Finance’s Trend Indicators page on Wednesday. Shares of the retailer gained more than 2% after the company’s quarterly results came in much better than expected, including improved gross margin and shrinking inventories. However, the company lowered its earnings forecast for the full year.
Shares of VinFast Auto (VFS) fell nearly 20% after shares of the EV automaker surged after their Nasdaq trading debut.
CAVA stock rose more than 1% after the company reported its first quarterly profit. Revenue grew 62.4% sequentially, jumping to $171.1 million from $105.3 million.
Coinbase (COIN) was almost flat after the cryptocurrency exchange said it had received regulatory approval to offer regulated crypto futures contracts to US retail clients in the coming months.