Drop in Apple shares due to weak iPhone X demand drags Wall Street lower

Wall Street's main indexes came under pressure on Tuesday following a 2.8 per cent drop in Apple's shares on a report of weak iPhone X demand.

Apple will slash its sales forecast for its flagship phone in the current quarter to 30 million units, down from what it said was an initial plan of 50 million units, Taiwan's Economic Daily reported, citing unidentified sources.

That, along with some bearish brokerage calls on iPhone X demand, put its shares on track for their worst single-day percentage fall since Aug. 10.

Shares of companies that supply parts to Apple, including Broadcom, Skyworks Solutions, Finisar and Lumentum Holdings, fell between 1.8 per cent and 3.5 per cent.

The S&P technology index fell 0.9 per cent, the only loser among the 11 major S&P 500 sectors.

Most markets around the world, including parts of Europe and Asia, were shut on Tuesday. Trading volumes are also expected to be light in the holiday week.

"It's going to be slow trading for most of the week. A market that's going to stay within a trading range, we could have a plus or a negative day, but nothing exciting," said Peter Cardillo, the chief market economist at First Standard Financial in New York.

At 9:34 a.m. ET (1434 GMT), the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 8.32 points, or 0.03 per cent, at 24,745.74 and the S&P 500 was down 2.4 points, or 0.09 per cent, at 2,680.94.

The Nasdaq Composite was down 29.11 points, or 0.42 per cent, at 6,930.86.

Sucampo Pharma surged 6 per cent after Mallinckrodt said it would acquire the drugmaker for $1.2 billion, to gain access to its constipation drug Amitiza. Mallinckrodt shares rose 4.3 per cent.
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Wall Street slips amid tax reform uncertainty, General Electric losses

US stocks were lower in morning trading on Monday as uncertainty over a US tax reform deal and GE's dismal outlook hit investor sentiment.

General Electric fell 3.5 percent after the industrial conglomerate cut its 2018 profit forecast, slashed dividend and unveiled a restructuring plan. The stock weighed the most on the S&P 500 index.

The S&P and the Dow ended the week lower for the first time in nine weeks on Friday after Senate Republicans unveiled a new tax plan that differed from the House of Representatives' version.

Hopes of lower taxes, one of President Donald Trump's main campaign promises, have helped drive the S&P 500 up 20 percent since the 2016 presidential election.

"We're entering a period of uncertainty until the tax bill is either passed or till we have more details," said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at First Standard Financial in New York.

"Any disappointment on corporate tax deductions will probably set the stage for the market to pull back."

With third-quarter earnings season on its last leg, investors are closely tracking developments around the tax bill as well as economic data to make their bets.
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Wall St pauses on downbeat earnings; Boeing slips 1% after results

Wall Street was slightly lower on Wednesday after a barrage of lacklustre earnings reports from companies, including AT&T, and Dow component Boeing weighed after revealing a surprise charge in the latest quarter.

AT&T fell 2.12 per cent and was the biggest drag on the S&P 500 index after the US No 2 wireless carrier's quarterly results missed estimates.

Boeing fell about 1 per cent after it booked a charge related to its troubled KC-46 aerial refuelling tanker.

The declines come after the Dow closed at another record high on Tuesday led by gains in industrial giants Caterpillar and 3M.

The earnings season has been largely positive, with more than 70 per cent of the S&P 500 companies that have reported so far beating profit expectations.

"The market is looking for additional fuel to continue the drive higher, whether it comes in the form of earnings or tax reform," said Andre Bakhos, managing director at Janlyn Capital in Bernardsville, New Jersey.

Investors were also keeping an eye on the nomination of the next Federal Reserve chief.

The dollar got a lift from a report that Republican senators were favouring Stanford University economist John Taylor over current Fed Governor Jerome Powell.
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Wall Street opens flat as investment banks fail to fuel optimism

Wall Street opened flat on Tuesday as upbeat earnings from big investment banks Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley failed to fuel the optimism that has led the major indexes to record highs.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 15.01 points, or 0.07 percent, to 22,971.97. The S&P 500 lost 0.5 points, or 0.01 percent, to 2,557.14. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 3.44 points, or 0.05 percent, to 6,620.57.
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Technology stocks boost Wall Street to hit fresh records

Major Wall Street indexes hit fresh records at the open on Monday on gains in financial and technology stocks even as investors awaited a barrage of earnings reports this week.

Apple gained 1.05 percent, providing the biggest boost to the Nasdaq and the S&P after KeyBanc upgraded the stock to "overweight".

Financial stocks gained for the first time in four days, led by bank stocks. Reactions to bank results last week were muted on concerns about credit card losses at JPMorgan and Citigroup and weak trading activity across the sector.

Investment banks Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley report before markets open on Tuesday. Insurer Travelers jumped 2 percent, providing the biggest boost to the Dow.

Video-streaming pioneer Netflix reports third-quarter results after market.

"The market still wants to be optimistic, it wants to continue to move higher from here," said Robert Pavlik, chief market strategist at Boston Private Wealth.
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