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US open: Stocks sharply lower as core PCE inflation unexpectedly rises

Fri 28 March 2025 13:37 | A A A

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FTSE 100 | FTSE 250 | Paris CAC 40 | Dow Jones | NASDAQ

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(Sharecast News) - Major indices were in the early on Friday as market participants digested the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation measure.

As of 1500 GMT, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 1.16% at 41,807.03, while the S&P 500 lost 1.35% to 5,616.62 and the Nasdaq Composite came out the gate 1.83% weaker at 17,478.15.

The Dow opened 492.67 points lower on Friday, extending losses recorded in the previous session after Donald Trump slapped a 25% tariff on "all cars that are not made in the United States".

Friday's primary focus will be February's personal consumption expenditures price index, which revealed the annual rate of US core PCE inflation unexpectedly rose last month, according to data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis. The year-on-year change in the core PCE index, which excludes volatile food and energy items, increased to 2.8% last month, up from 2.7% in January and ahead of economists' predictions for no change. The monthly change in the core PCE index was 0.4%, picking up from the 0.3% growth registered the month before and ahead of the 0.3% expected by the market.

However, the headline PCE index remained steady at 0.3% month-on-month and 2.5% year-on-year - in line with expectations. Meanwhile, personal incomes rose by 0.8% in February, marking the strongest rate of monthly growth since January 2024. This was up from the revised 0.7% increase registered in January and the 0.4% consensus forecast.

Elsewhere on the macro front, the University of Michigan's consumer sentiment index was revised lower in March, down from a preliminary reading of 57.9 to 57 - well below February's 64.7 print to the lowest level in more than two years.

In the corporate space, athletic wear business Lululemon traded sharply lower in early action after providing weaker-than-expected Q1 and FY25 guidance.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com

Dow Jones - Risers

Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $89.17 1.79%

Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $71.29 0.78%

Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $519.15 0.67%

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $164.05 0.56%

Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $307.45 0.55%

Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $169.51 0.47%

Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $45.10 0.32%

Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $11.19 0.27%

Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $263.27 0.22%

Dowdupont Inc. (DWDP) $0.00 0.00%

Dow Jones - Fallers

Intel Corp. (INTC) $22.70 -3.87%

Boeing Co. (BA) $174.05 -2.83%

Nike Inc. (NKE) $64.10 -2.58%

American Express Co. (AXP) $265.30 -2.47%

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $545.60 -2.38%

Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $332.10 -2.12%

Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $272.64 -1.86%

Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $98.67 -1.77%

Apple Inc. (AAPL) $219.98 -1.73%

Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $384.45 -1.57%

S&P 500 - Risers

Amer Water Works (AWK) $146.05 2.09%

Eversource Energy (ES) $61.52 2.02%

FirstEnergy Corp. (FE) $40.22 1.95%

PPL Corp. (PPL) $35.66 1.94%

AES Corp. (AES) $12.66 1.89%

Wisconsin Energy Corp. (WEC) $108.19 1.85%

Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $89.17 1.79%

CMS Energy Corp. (CMS) $74.38 1.68%

Public Service Enterprise Group Inc. (PEG) $81.98 1.57%

Pinnacle West Capital Corp. (PNW) $94.44 1.53%

S&P 500 - Fallers

Foot Locker Inc. (FL) $14.49 -5.11%

Ralph Lauren Corp (RL) $214.17 -4.88%

Gap Inc. (GAP) $20.30 -4.38%

VF Corp. (VFC) $15.78 -4.16%

Delta Airlines Inc. (DAL) $44.24 -4.13%

Carnival Corp. (CCL) $19.93 -4.07%

Paypal Holdings Inc (PYPL) $66.09 -4.02%

Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR) $73.86 -4.01%

United Airlines Holdings Inc (UAL) $70.66 -3.90%

Intel Corp. (INTC) $22.70 -3.87%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Vodafone Group Plc ADS (VOD) $9.56 2.08%

Mondelez International Inc. (MDLZ) $68.29 1.17%

Kraft Heinz Co. (KHC) $30.39 1.06%

eBay Inc. (EBAY) $67.26 0.67%

Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $307.45 0.55%

Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $11.19 0.27%

Incyte Corp. (INCY) $60.84 0.26%

Monster Beverage Corp (MNST) $58.72 0.23%

Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) $145.45 0.10%

Cerner Corp. (CERN) $0.00 0.00%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Baidu Inc. (BIDU) $93.30 -5.20%

Qvc Group Inc Series A (QVCGA) $0.20 -4.33%

Paypal Holdings Inc (PYPL) $66.09 -4.02%

Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR) $73.86 -4.01%

Intel Corp. (INTC) $22.70 -3.87%

Amazon.Com Inc. (AMZN) $194.58 -3.37%

American Airlines Group (AAL) $10.78 -3.23%

Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance Inc. (ULTA) $358.89 -3.09%

JD.com, Inc. (JD) $41.57 -3.08%

Intuitive Surgical Inc. (ISRG) $492.65 -3.00%

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