US close: Dow Jones heads south, S&P 500 ekes out modest gain

(Sharecast News) - Major indices were mostly lower at the close of trading on Thursday as traders packed up for the Easter long-weekend break.

At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 1.33% at 39,142.23, while the S&P 500 picked up 0.13% to 5,282.70 and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 0.13% weaker at 16,286.45.

The Dow closed 527.16 points lower on Thursday, extending losses recorded in the previous session after Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell warned that the central bank could very well find itself in somewhat of a quandary when it comes to its efforts to both control inflation and support economic growth.

Powell noted that with elevated uncertainty surrounding the impact of Donald Trump's recently implemented tariffs on the US economy, he now expects to see inflation rise and growth slow, undermining both elements of the Fed's dual mandate of ensuring price stability while maximising employment and making it harder for the central bank to justify loosening monetary policy and further.

"We may find ourselves in the challenging scenario in which our dual-mandate goals are in tension," Powell said. "If that were to occur, we would consider how far the economy is from each goal, and the potentially different time horizons over which those respective gaps would be anticipated to close."

Powell said Trump's tariffs were "likely to move us further away" from its goals for "the balance of this year" but gave no insight as to where he sees interest rates headed, noting that, for the time being, the Fed was "well positioned to wait for greater clarity before considering any adjustments" to its policy stance.

Trump later said the termination of Powell's termination "can't come fast enough", raising the question of whether he intends to replace Powell when his term expires in 2026 or outright fire him, which the Fed head has repeatedly cautioned would be illegal.

On the macro front, Americans lined up for unemployment benefits at a decelerated pace in the week ended 12 April, according to the Department of Labor. Initial jobless claims unexpectedly fell by 9,000 to 215,000 last week, the lowest reading in more than two months, with analysts actually expecting to see an increase of 1,000. Also of note, the advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 1.2% for the week ended 5 April, unchanged from the previous week's unrevised rate.

Elsewhere, factory sector activity in the US mid-Atlantic region shrank sharply in April, as trade tariffs began to bite, according to the results of a closely followed survey. The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia's manufacturing sector index fell from a reading of 12.5 in March to -26.4 for April, missing consensus estimates for a more subdued contraction to 2.0. A sub-index for new orders was especially weak, falling from 8.7 to -34.2, whilst another linked to the number of employees dropped from 19.7 to 0.2. In parallel, a sub-index tracking the prices paid by companies edged up from 48,3 to 51.0.

On another note, building permits rose by 1.6% to 1.48m in March, above market expectations of 1.45m, according to a preliminary estimate from the Census Bureau, while housing starts plunged 11.4% month-on-month to 1.32m last month, the lowest level in four months, dragged down by weak demand and elevated prices and mortgage rates.

Finally, US business inventories rose 0.2% month-on-month in February, according to the Census Bureau, following a 0.3% uptick in January and marking the second consecutive monthly increase.

In the corporate space, UnitedHealth shares headed south after posting quarterly earnings that fell short of expectations and lowering its FY guidance amid soaring medical costs, while homebuilder DR Horton also cut its FY guidance on the back of waning demand.

American Express, on the other hand, topped estimates in a strong Q1 showing as American consumers continued to spend throughout the start of the year, while Eli Lilly shares rallied after the drugmaker revealed its experimental weight-loss pill helped diabetic patients lose similar amounts of weight to injectable GLP-1 medications.

After the close, streaming giant Netflix smashed profit estimates on the back of a surge in both subscribers and revenues.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com

Dow Jones - Risers

Nike Inc. (NKE) $55.76 4.13%

Boeing Co. (BA) $161.90 3.47%

Home Depot Inc. (HD) $355.06 2.62%

Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $170.64 2.55%

Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) $28.15 2.48%

Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $84.81 2.46%

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $157.47 2.31%

Walmart Inc. (WMT) $93.22 2.23%

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $509.49 2.09%

Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $77.99 2.01%

Dow Jones - Fallers

Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $454.11 -22.38%

Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $277.29 -4.98%

Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $367.78 -3.25%

Intel Corp. (INTC) $18.93 -1.87%

Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $55.76 -1.65%

Apple Inc. (AAPL) $196.98 -1.14%

Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $247.26 -1.03%

American Express Co. (AXP) $251.31 -0.64%

Visa Inc. (V) $329.61 -0.52%

3M Co. (MMM) $130.29 -0.19%

S&P 500 - Risers

Eli Lilly and Company (LLY) $839.96 14.30%

Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR) $79.14 10.25%

Fidelity National Information Services Inc. (FIS) $74.58 8.65%

Foot Locker Inc. (FL) $11.90 7.01%

Celanese Corp. (CE) $40.09 6.82%

Diamondback Energy Inc. (FANG) $137.64 5.92%

Kohls Corp. (KSS) $6.48 5.71%

Apache Corp. (APA) $16.11 5.36%

Seagate Technology Plc (STX) $75.78 5.29%

Halliburton Co. (HAL) $22.53 5.13%

S&P 500 - Fallers

Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $454.11 -22.38%

Global Payments Inc. (GPN) $69.46 -17.43%

Snap On Inc. (SNA) $305.44 -8.00%

Humana Inc. (HUM) $264.48 -7.40%

Robert Half Inc. (RHI) $45.42 -5.32%

United Airlines Holdings Inc (UAL) $66.30 -5.29%

Illumina Inc. (ILMN) $71.20 -5.22%

Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $277.29 -4.98%

Marsh & McLennan Companies Inc. (MMC) $220.25 -4.86%

Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $101.49 -4.21%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR) $79.14 10.25%

Seagate Technology Plc (STX) $75.78 5.29%

Align Technology Inc. (ALGN) $171.41 4.16%

Costco Wholesale Corp. (COST) $994.50 2.25%

Mercadolibre Inc. (MELI) $2,099.37 2.19%

Adobe Systems Inc. (ADBE) $348.80 1.60%

Western Digital Corp. (WDC) $36.51 1.50%

Idexx Laboratories Inc. (IDXX) $411.49 1.47%

NetEase Inc. Ads (NTES) $98.73 1.47%

Biogen Inc (BIIB) $118.61 1.41%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Qvc Group Inc Series A (QVCGA) $0.14 -14.67%

Illumina Inc. (ILMN) $71.20 -5.22%

Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $277.29 -4.98%

Workday, Inc. (WDAY) $221.02 -4.79%

Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $101.49 -4.21%

American Airlines Group (AAL) $9.46 -3.96%

Lam Research Corp. (LRCX) $63.76 -3.77%

Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. (CHKP) $214.96 -3.56%

Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $367.78 -3.25%

Tesla Inc (TSLA) $241.37 -3.25%