Stocks saw a slight dip on Monday, with August beginning on a rocky note for Wall Street.
The Dow Jones reported a 75-point drop, equivalent to 0.2%. The S&P 500 experienced a decline just shy of 0.1%, and the tech-centric Nasdaq remained almost unchanged.
Tesla’s stock went down by over 2% after revealing a price cut for select Model Y variants in China. Meanwhile, Nikola’s shares plummeted almost 12% in the wake of an electric truck recall.
These developments occur amid challenges for stocks to maintain their momentum as summer nears its end. The previous week witnessed the S&P 500 and Nasdaq decreasing by 0.3% and 1.9% respectively. Notably, this marked the first instance of Nasdaq’s back-to-back weekly losses this year.
Conversely, the Dow rose by 0.62%, marking its third positive outcome in the last four weeks.
Upcoming factors potentially influencing the market include insights into the U.S. consumer’s status. Financial updates from major retailers such as Home Depot, Target, and Walmart are anticipated, along with July’s retail sales data set for a Tuesday release.
The forthcoming financial summaries follow last week’s inflation updates, indicating that while price hikes have slowed from their post-crisis zenith, they remain above the Federal Reserve’s 2% benchmark.
UBS’s Jason Draho commented in a recent note, “Two weeks back, our forecast was of a subdued market until more concrete economic data and Federal Reserve cues emerge. The current market’s unpredictability aligns with this prediction.”
Draho further mentioned, “As August progresses, traditionally a period with reduced trading activity, investors are shifting their focus, contemplating scenarios different from a smooth transition. This shift is influenced by recent news that hasn’t been as positive as earlier in the summer.”
