US stocks lower into close
US crude up a tad
UK Prime Minister's Brexit speech tomorrow
After hours: Facebook phlegmatic; Texas stars; AIG off the hook
There was not much reaction after-hours to Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) deciding to hand over to Congress details of some 3,000 ads believed to be from Russian profiles.
Congress is investigating whether the Russian government tried to influence the outcome of the 2016 US presidential campaign.
READ Facebook to Turn Over Russian-Linked Ads to Congress
Facebook shares edged 51 cents lower to US$170.60 in after-hours trading, though that might have been in reaction to news that Mark Zuckerberg, the founder and chief executive officer of Facebook, had sold almost a quarter of a million shares at an average price of US$171.75 a share.
Elsewhere in the technology sector semiconductor Texas Instruments Incorporated (NASDAQ:TXN) was wanted after it hiked its quarterly dividend from 50 cents to 62 cents.
On top of that, the company increased its share repurchase program by US$6bn.
The shares rose 1.1% to US$86.05.
READ Texas Instruments shares boosted by divi hike and share buybacks
American International Group Inc (NYSE:AIG), the insurance group that was among the main boneheads that precipitated the financial meltdown in the previous decade, may be about to have some slack cut it by the Financial Stability Oversight Council.
The regulators are reportedly set to discuss whether AIG, which has been under stricter oversight than its peers since its management acted so irresponsibly/cluelessly (delete as appropriate) in the run-up to the credit crunch, no longer poses a threat to the economy.
Last month it was reported that remuneration for top executives at AIG had returned to pre-bailout levels.
In 2008, AIG paid is chief executive a nominal salary of a dollar; in 2017, the boss – Brian Duperreault – is due to get a basic US$17mln, having already trousered US$12mln in lieu of shares he would have received had he not jumped ship from his old company, Hamilton Insurance.
Stocks close lower
US stocks are trading lower heading into the close as the markets continue to assess the impact of the Fed's monetary policy decisions.
Also ahead is a speech tomorrow from UK Prime Minister Theresa May on Brexit.
Also today, it emerged that the number of Americans claiming for unemployment benefits unexpectedly fell last week, but the data continued to be influenced by Hurricanes Harvey and Irma.
Initial claims for state unemployment benefits declined 23,000 to a seasonally adjusted 259,000 for the week ended September 16, according to official figures.
On Wall Street, the Dow Jones closed 54 points lower at 22,359. The S&P 500 was off 8 at 2,501 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq was down 33 at 6,423.
US crude, or West Texas Intermediate, is up 0.04% to stand at $50.71 each.
In Toronto, the TSX was up 65 points at 15,455.
MID-SESSION
US stocks are still in the red at mid-session.
The Dow Jones is down 38 at 22,373. The Nasdaq is 21 lower at 6,434 and the S&P 500 is off 5.18 at 2,503.
Among the movers, Eros International plc (NYSE: EROS) dropped 2.9% as it reported a content deal with Dharma Productions.
Scholastic Corp (NASDAQ:SCHL) fell over 7% to $35.63 as it posted results.
The group saw its first-quarter results miss expectations lacking last year's record-breaking sales of ‘Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Parts One and Two’, but noted that it has a new Harry Potter book coming out in 2018.
On the winning front, Akari Therapeutics PLC (NASDAQ:AKTX) surged over 56% to $8.75 as it told investors it plans to advance Coversin following advice from an FDA meeting.
OPEN
US stocks were seeing red at the open and London's Footsie was also lower.
The Dow Jones shed 28 at 22,383 and the tech heavy Nasdaq is off 37 at 6,418.
The S&P 500 is down over seven points to stand at 2,500.
The TSX- the largest index in Toronto, is higher, however, up 0.35 at 15,389.
Traders are digesting comments from the US central bank yesterday, which laid out plans to unwind its monetary stimulus and hinted at a rate rise again this year.
In equities, one of the top gainers was Anardarko Peteroleum Corp (NYSE:APC), which added almost 8% to US$48.34 each after it unveiled a US$2.5bn share repurchase program through the end of 2018, and targeting $bn in buybacks before year-end 2017.
9.30am
Dennis de Jong, at London-based UFX.com, on US jobless claims, which unexpectedly declined last week .
“Janet Yellen suggested that the Federal Reserve is eyeing up a “gradual path of rate increases” and today’s unexpected fall in jobless claims will help to keep things on track," he said.
“Figures for the US jobs market may throw up some alarming numbers over the coming weeks, though. Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria have severely disrupted some areas and payroll employment is likely to have been badly affected."
PREVIEW
US shares are seen starting lower as the markets digest last night's interest rate hold and the unwinding of the Fed's balance sheet.
The S&P 500 and Dow Jones finished higher on Wednesday but both benchmarks are seen lower in futures trade today. The S&P 500 is down 1.45, while the Dow is off 8 points.
The tech heavy Nasdaq is down 4 points in pre-market. In London, FTSE 100 is down six points as traders digest the prospect of another US rate rise before the end of 2017.
Google, aka Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) shares are down 0.10% in pre-market as it said it was paying $1.1 billion to get its hands on smartphone expertise from struggling Taiwanese manufacturer HTC.
Entrepreneur Elon Musk is seemingly shaking up the microchip market, sending Advanced Micro Devices Inc (NASDAQ:AMD) and Nvidia Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) stock in opposite directions.
AMD shares added 1.60% after hours, whereas Nvidia fell back 2.2% to $181.75 in pre-market deals.