(Sharecast News) - Wall Street stocks were mixed early on Thursday amid ongoing concerns surrounding Donald Trump's tariff war and news that America's gross domestic product had risen slightly more than expected in Q4.
As of 1520 GMT, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.06% at 42,479.27, while the S&P 500 lost 1.12% to 5,712.20 and the Nasdaq Composite came out the gate 2.04% weaker at 17,899.01
The Dow opened just 24.48 points higher on Thursday, doing little to reverse losses recorded in the previous session after Donald Trump unveiled new 25% tariffs on auto imports.
Thursday's primary focus was news that America's Q4 gross domestic product had expanded 2.4% on an annualised rate, slightly ahead of expectations for a 2.3% increase but significantly less than Q3's 3.1%, according to the Commerce Department's Bureau of Economic Analysis. The slight upward revision reflected a decrease in imports and comes as concerns have grown that Donald Trump's ongoing trade war and inclement weather would impact activity during Q1.
Elsewhere on the macro front, Americans lined up for unemployment benefits at only a slightly decelerated pace in the week ended 22 March, according to the Department of Labor. Initial jobless claims decreased by 1,000 to 224,000 last week, slightly below expectations for an unchanged reading of 225,000 but still at historically low levels. Continuing claims fell by 25,000, while the four-week moving average also came to 224,000, down 4,750 from the previous week's revised average and pointing to a robust labour market despite a prolonged period of restrictive monetary policy and some bleak macro data in Q1.
On another note, a preliminary reading of February's goods trade balance showed that the US merchandise-trade deficit narrowed for the first time in four months on the back of a stronger-than-expected export performance as companies tried to get ahead of tariffs. The shortfall in goods trade narrowed by 4.9% to $147.9bn according to the Commerce Department. Economists had expected to see a $139.0bn gap.
Still on data, US pending home sales rose 2.0% month-on-month in February to 72, according to the National Association of Realtors, as mortgage rates declined by economic uncertainty continued to hang around. Pending home sales were down 3.6% on an annualised basis.
Finally, the Kansas Federal Reserve's manufacturing index increased to a reading of +1 in March, up from -13 in February.
In the corporate space, General Motors and Ford both traded lower following Trump's auto tariff revelations, while Tesla shares were in the green as a result of the electric carmaker's predominantly domestic production.
Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com
Dow Jones - Risers
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $44.97 1.78%
Nike Inc. (NKE) $66.89 1.76%
Boeing Co. (BA) $181.60 1.71%
Visa Inc. (V) $349.03 1.41%
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $163.63 1.18%
Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $70.61 0.84%
Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $167.67 0.65%
Walmart Inc. (WMT) $85.73 0.61%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $222.54 0.46%
Home Depot Inc. (HD) $363.33 0.33%
Dow Jones - Fallers
3M Co. (MMM) $149.99 -1.76%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $564.08 -1.71%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $23.08 -1.43%
Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) $35.22 -1.01%
International Business Machines Corporation (CDI) (IBM) $248.20 -0.86%
Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $279.27 -0.61%
JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $249.71 -0.53%
American Express Co. (AXP) $274.71 -0.47%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $87.90 -0.24%
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $167.64 -0.20%
S&P 500 - Risers
Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR) $75.00 8.37%
Advance Auto Parts (AAP) $39.86 5.39%
O'Reilly Automotive Inc. (ORLY) $1,429.05 3.48%
Carmax Inc. (KMX) $77.53 3.28%
AutoZone Inc. (AZO) $3,800.00 3.21%
Gap Inc. (GAP) $22.02 3.02%
Dollar General Corp (DG) $86.96 2.67%
eBay Inc. (EBAY) $67.28 2.59%
Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (CMG) $51.22 2.30%
Abbott Laboratories (ABT) $129.48 2.27%
S&P 500 - Fallers
Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (JEF) $54.95 -8.86%
Borg Warner Inc. (BWA) $28.73 -5.02%
PPG Industries Inc. (PPG) $107.55 -3.91%
Nektar Therapeutics (NKTR) $0.77 -3.63%
Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (AMD) $107.12 -2.79%
Broadcom Inc. (AVGO) $174.80 -2.50%
Freeport-McMoRan Inc (FCX) $40.46 -2.49%
Celanese Corp. (CE) $57.69 -2.48%
Ford Motor Co. (F) $10.06 -2.38%
Kohls Corp. (KSS) $8.74 -2.35%
Nasdaq 100 - Risers
Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR) $75.00 8.37%
Tesla Inc (TSLA) $288.96 6.21%
O'Reilly Automotive Inc. (ORLY) $1,429.05 3.48%
Trip.com Group Limited (TCOM) $65.27 3.42%
JD.com, Inc. (JD) $43.17 3.33%
eBay Inc. (EBAY) $67.28 2.59%
Biomarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (BMRN) $73.00 2.13%
T-Mobile Us, Inc. (TMUS) $267.45 1.88%
Verisk Analytics Inc. (VRSK) $297.02 1.71%
Netflix Inc. (NFLX) $986.21 1.60%
Nasdaq 100 - Fallers
Broadcom Inc. (AVGO) $174.80 -2.50%
Texas Instruments Inc (TXN) $181.81 -1.45%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $23.08 -1.43%
Expedia Group Inc. (EXPE) $171.15 -1.32%
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. (REGN) $632.10 -1.26%
Marriott International - Class A (MAR) $243.81 -1.18%
Incyte Corp. (INCY) $60.59 -1.09%
Sirius XM Holdings Inc (SIRI) $23.69 -1.06%
Applied Materials Inc. (AMAT) $149.11 -1.04%
Microchip Technology Inc. (MCHP) $51.63 -1.04%
7.27 (0.08%)
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