Apple, Philip Morris, chip stocks lead Wall Street slide; financials gain

US stocks dropped on Thursday, weighed down by a broad-based decline in technology stocks from Apple to chipmakers as well as a tumble in consumer staples such as Philip Morris and P&G.
A warning from Taiwan Semiconductor (TSMC), the world's largest contract chipmaker and an Apple supplier, on soft demand for smartphones and on the semiconductor industry's growth this year sparked a tumble in chip stocks.

Apple's shares also fell 2.3 percent, with analysts telling Reuters that TSMC's warning was related to the iPhone maker. Apple was the biggest drag on the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the Nasdaq.

TSMC's US-listed shares fell 6.3 percent. Intel declined 3.1 percent, falling the most on the Dow. All stocks on the Philadelphia SE Semiconductor index were in the red, with the index itself tumbling 3.9 percent.

The S&P consumer staples sector declined 3.2 percent as Philip Morris plunged 17.4 percent after the tobacco company's weak results and forecast.

Global stocks tank most since Nov; Facebook data breach drags tech stocks

US stocks joined a broad decline in global equity markets on Monday as traders turned cautious ahead of the Federal Reserve's policy meeting this week and amid continuing concerns about the threat of a global trade war.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell as much as 425 during the session and ended won 335.60 points, or 1.35 per cent, at 24,610.91. The S&P 500 index lost 39.09 points, or 1.42 per cent, to 2,712.92 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite index dropped 155.07 points, or 1.8 per cent, to 7,334.24.
MSCI's main 47-country world stock index fell 1.1 per cent in afternoon trading after European stocks dipped and benchmark US indexes declined. Global equities are on their worst run since November.
Facebook shock to tech stocks

At the same time, shares of Facebook Inc shed nearly 7 per cent after reports that a political consultancy that worked on US President Donald Trump's 2016 campaign gained inappropriate access to data on 50 million of the social network's users. That decline dragged other technology stocks, which have led the market higher over the last two years.

Wall Street climbs on higher oil prices, quarterly earnings' reports

US stocks rose on Thursday with a broad-based rally across sectors as speculation over China halting US bond purchases eased and investors focused on quarterly earnings reports and higher oil prices.

US crude futures rose to $63.82 a barrel, its highest since December 2014, boosted by a surprise drop in US production and lower crude inventories.

Positive brokerage recommendations on oil majors Exxon and Chevron lifted their shares, helping the S&P energy index climb 0.62 percent.

"It's back to a generally positive mode," said Scott Brown, chief economist at Raymond James in St. Petersburg, Florida.

At 9:34 a.m. ET (1434 GMT), the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 46.19 points, or 0.18 percent, at 25,415.32 and the S&P 500 was up 5.29 points, or 0.19 percent, at 2,753.52.

The Nasdaq Composite was up 12.79 points, or 0.18 percent, at 7,166.36.

The S&P and the Nasdaq snapped their six-day rally on Wednesday after Bloomberg News reported Chinese officials had recommended halting its U. S. bond purchases, which China dismissed later.

Also weighing on the dour sentiment was a Reuters report on Wednesday that Canada is increasingly convinced U. S. President Donald Trump would soon announce an exit from the North American Free Trade Agreement.
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Spotify price tag rises ahead of filing for NYSE listing: Sources

The value of music streaming service Spotify, which is planning a stock market listing, has grown around 20 percent to at least $19 billion in the past few months, outperforming U.S. and European tech indexes, sources familiar with the matter said.

The most recent private trades in the Swedish company have taken place at above $4,000 per share according to sources.

One of the sources said the recent trades were at a record-high of $4,200, valuing the firm at $19 billion or more. That compares to around $16 billion earlier this autumn.

Spotify is aiming to file its intention to float with U.S. regulators towards the end of this year, sources said.

Also supporting perceptions of Spotify's increasing value, Tencent's purchase of new Spotify shares implies a valuation of $5,000 per share, one of the sources said.

Spotify and the music arm of China's Tencent Holdings Ltd said last week they would buy minority stakes in each other, but gave no financial details.
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Wall Street slips as tensions with North Korea rattle investors

US stock indexes opened lower on Wednesday as investors turned risk averse following rising tensions between North Korea and the United States.

North Korea said it was considering plans to fire missiles at Guam, a US-held Pacific island, after President Donald Trump on Tuesday warned the nuclear-armed nation that it would face "fire and fury" if it threatened the United States.

Safe-haven assets gained following the mounting geopolitical tensions. Gold rose 1.2 percent, while the Swiss franc was on track to post its biggest single day rise in about two-and-a-half years.

Trump's comments also sparked a late afternoon selling on Tuesday, with the Dow ending a nine-day streak of closing records.

The CBOE Volatility Index, the most widely followed barometer of expected near-term stock market volatility, was up 1.03 points at 11.98 points, its highest level in a month.

"The geopolitical tensions have prompted a risk off trade amid investors," said Naeem Aslam, chief market analyst at Think Markets UK.

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Dollar hits a year-low, global stocks rally set to end over strong euro

The US dollar sank to its lowest in more than a year against key world currencies on Friday as investors assessed comments from the European Central Bank (ECB) and obstacles to US President Donald Trump's domestic agenda, while world stock markets were poised to snap a 10-session streak of gains.

Gains in the yen, gold and US Treasuries pointed to moves into safe-haven assets compared with stocks that are considered riskier. Oil prices sank more than 1 per cent.

The euro built on sharp gains from a day earlier, rising to near two-year highs against the dollar and undermining European stocks, with Germany's DAX equity index down 1.7 per cent.

ECB President Mario Draghi said on Thursday financing conditions remained broadly supportive, and that the euro's appreciation had "received some attention." However, he did not cite that as a problem nor did he directly try to talk the currency down.

"The fact that Draghi didn't necessarily argue too much against the strength of the euro... certainly gave the greenlight for individuals to want to own the currency again or actually add to their positions," said Dean Popplewell, chief currency strategist at Oanda in Toronto.

MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe shed 0.32 per cent, falling after 10 days of gains.

US stock indexes opened lower, pulling back from record high levels reached earlier in the week.
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