Wall Street stocks opened lower on Friday after both Apple and Amazon posted disappointing earnings overnight.
As of 1530 BST, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.11% at 35,691.28, while the S&P 500 was 0.32% softer at 4,581.92 and the Nasdaq Composite came out the gate 0.47% weaker at 15,375.56.
The Dow Jones opened 39.20 points lower on Friday, cutting into gains recorded in the previous session following the release of several key data points and a number of earnings reports from big-name US firms.
In focus early on Friday, Amazon shares were in the red after the e-commerce behemoth posted quarterly earnings and revenue that fell well and truly short of expectations and also issued disappointing guidance for the all-important holiday period, while Apple shares were also heading south after the iPhone maker’s quarterly revenues missed expectations on the back of larger-than-expected supply constraints on its devices, marking the first time the company’s revenues missed estimates since 2017.
On the macro front, personal income growth in the US surprised sharply to the downside last month, yet Americans continued splashing out more quickly than expected. According to the Department of Commerce, US personal incomes dropped at a 1.0% month-on-month pace in September (consensus: -0.1%).
Personal consumption expenditures on the other hand edged past forecasts, rising by 0.6% month-on-month – one-tenth of a percentage point quicker than anticipated.
Also in data news, the University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment index fell to 71.7 in October from 72.8 in the previous month, with the positive impact of higher income expectations and the receding coronavirus being offset by higher rates of inflation and falling confidence in government economic policies.
Lastly, the Institute for Supply Management’s Chicago purchasing managers index rose to 68.4 in October from 64.7 in September, picking up after two consecutive monthly declines.
Elsewhere, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said she was hopeful that the White House’s infrastructure package will be approved shortly and added that she does not think it will exacerbate inflation problems seen in the US.
“It will boost the economy’s potential to grow, the economy’s supply potential, which tends to push inflation down, not up,” Yellen told CNBC.
No major corporate earnings were slated for release on Friday.
