A robust earnings season, which has tempered some concerns about the massive spending by AI-related companies, and growing optimism over the potential end of hostilities in the Iran war helped propel both the Dow Industrials and S&P 500 to record highs earlier this week. Oil prices rose, with U.S. crude settling up 2.75% at $77.29 a barrel and Brent settling at $82.49 per barrel, up 3.83%. Iran's semi-official Fars news agency reported that an Iranian parliamentary committee is reviewing a preliminary bill that would bar U.S., Israeli and other "hostile" vessels from transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
"You're seeing perhaps more muted response to macro news than you would otherwise see, probably due to the fact of the summer and a little bit of fatigue, there's a little bit of headline fatigue, specifically around Iran," said Robert Bernstone, head of trading at SummitTX Capital in New York.
"Iran is having less of an impact right now, to be clear, I'm not saying it has no impact ... tweets are something, headlines are something, but we really want to see the devil is in the details."
According to preliminary data, the S&P 500 lost 13.56 points, or 0.18%, to end at 7,709.99 points, while the Nasdaq Composite lost 10.99 points, or 0.04%, to 26,352.45. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 453.64 points, or 0.83%, to 53,895.48.
The recent indications of movement toward a peace deal helped push crude prices lower earlier in the week and, in turn, eased inflation worries and expectations for a rate hike from the Federal Reserve, which also served to push U.S. Treasury yields lower.
WESTERN DIGITAL, SANDISK DROP
Of the 382 companies in the S&P 500 that have reported earnings through Wednesday morning, 84.8% have topped analyst expectations, according to LSEG data, well above the 68% average beat rate since 1994.
SPACEX LOCKUP PERIOD ENDS
SpaceX shares erased losses from earlier in the session and closed higher, defying expectations that they would be pressured by insider selling, as the lockup period for early investors holding the stock expired. On the data front, the number of Americans filing claims for unemployment benefits increased slightly last week. The report came ahead of closely watched nonfarm payrolls figures for July due on Friday, which will shape expectations for the Fed's path of interest rates at a time when Chairman Kevin Warsh has scaled back on forward guidance from the central bank.
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