Dow futures bounce after index drops 1100 points in 10th straight ...
Traders work at the New York Stock Exchange on Dec. 17, 2024.
NYSE
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was higher on Thursday, rebounding from its 10th straight loss.
Stocks plunged Wednesday after the Federal Reserve struck a heavy blow to the roaring bull market, signaling that it was likely to only cut interest rates twice next year, down from the four reductions that had been penciled in during their last forecast in September. The central bank also trimmed its benchmark overnight borrowing rate a quarter percentage point Wednesday, to a target range of 4.25% to 4.5%, but the question now is what policymakers will do in 2025.
"I think that this correction could last a bit," Harvest Portfolio Management CEO Paul Meeks told CNBC's "Squawk Box" on Thursday. "You've seen the marquee name Nvidia come down, so what I would expect people to do [and] what I would recommend people to do is to maybe keep some powder dry."
Chair Jerome Powell didn't offer investors much in the way of immediate comfort. "We're at 4.3% — that's meaningfully restrictive and I think it's a well-calibrated rate for us to continue to make progress on inflation while keeping a strong labor market," Powell said at a press conference following the Fed meeting, noting that cutting rates in recent months has allowed the central bank to "be more cautious as we consider more adjustments to our policy rate."
Leading up to Wednesday's rate move, Wall Street was betting on the Fed to stay more aggressive in lowering borrowing costs, which affects everything from what companies pay to raise capital to how much it costs consumers to buy a new house or car.
But with the revamped Fed outlook, the Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 1,123.03 points, or 2.58%, to 42,326.87 —posting its longest losing streak since 1974, and putting the index on track for its worst weekly performance since March 2023. The S&P 500 tumbled 2.95% and the Nasdaq Composite lost 3.56% as the tech-heavy index saw losses pick up towards the end of the session. The 30-stock Dow and S&P 500 both logged their biggest one-day loss since August, when the unwinding of the yen carry trade rocked markets.
Treasury yields jumped following the Fed's cautious outlook, further pressuring shares. The 10-year Treasury yield rose more than 13 basis points to cross 4.50%. It was up further early Thursday.
The Cboe Volatility Index, known as Wall Street's "fear gauge" also soared, signaling heightened investor uncertainty over the path of interest rates.
In early trading Thursday, Micron Technology plunged 14% after the chipmaker reported weaker-than-expected guidance for the second quarter.
Initial filings for unemployment benefits fell back to their recent trend last week after briefly spiking higher, the Labor Department reported Thursday.
Jobless claims totaled 220,000 for the period ending Dec. 14, a decline of 22,000 from the previous period and lower than the Dow Jones estimate for 230,000. The four-week moving average, which accounts for volatility in the numbers, edged higher to 225,500.
Continuing claims, which run a week behind, nudged lower to 1.874 million.
—Jeff Cox
These are the stocks making the biggest moves in premarket trading:
Micron — The chip stock plunged nearly 13% in premarket trading after the chipmaker issued weaker-than-expected second-quarter guidance. First-quarter revenue was inline with analysts' expectations, while earnings topped estimates, however.Lamb Weston — Shares of the frozen potato maker sank 18% after posting quarterly results that fell short of estimates on the top and bottom lines. The company also named a new CEO as it faces ongoing pressure from activist investor Jana Partners to switch up its leadership team.Darden Restaurants — The Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse parent jumped 8% after reporting an earnings and revenue beat for its fiscal second quarter. Darden also raised its full-year revenue guidance.— Samantha Subin
Innodata shares jumped more than 2% in premarket trading on Thursday after Wedbush joined the bull camp.
Thursday's pop comes after Wedbush's Daniel Ives initiated coverage of the data engineering stock with an outperform rating. Ives' price target suggests shares can surge more than 40% above Wednesday's closing level.
"Innodata's expertise in data annotation and AI over its decades of experience will lead the company to be a leader" in custom large language models, Ives told clients.
CNBC Pro subscribers can click here to read more about his call.
— Alex Harring
Bank of America is stepping to the sidelines on Micron Technology on the heels of its latest quarterly results.
Analyst Vivek Arya downgraded shares to neutral from buy and slashed his price target, which now implies nearly 6% upside from Wednesday's close.
The call comes as the company's second-quarter forecast came in weaker than expected. Looking ahead, Arya anticipates that the company's gross margin will remain "weak" for both its second and third quarters.
"We see muted near-term memory pricing environment on lackluster PC/phone demand, putting pressure on GM for the foreseeable future," the analyst said in a Thursday note.
Shares plunged around 13% in the premarket following the company's results and Arya's call. This year, the stock has risen almost 22%, underperforming the S&P 500 in year-to-date gains.
— Sean Conlon
European markets were lower as trading kicked off on Thursday, with the pan-European Stoxx 600 falling 1.26% shortly after markets opened. All sectors started the day in negative territory.
Stoxx 600
Major European bourses also pulled back, with Germany's DAX last 1.07% lower, the French CAC 40 falling 1.29% and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 down 1.17%.
— Sophie Kiderlin
SINGAPORE — Asia-Pacific stocks and currencies fell Thursday, amid a broader market sell-off after the U.S. Federal Reserve delivered its third consecutive rate reduction and signaled fewer rate cuts ahead.
The Japanese yen dipped 0.74% to 155.94 against the greenback, hitting a one-month low, as Bank of Japan kept its interest rate unchanged.
The Nikkei 225 lost 0.69% to end at 38,813.58, while Topix was down 0.22%, finishing at 2,713.83.
In South Korea, the Kospi index dropped 1.95% to close at 2,435.93 and the Kosdaq index declined 1.89% to 684.36.
The South Korean won hovered near its weakest level since March 2009, and was last trading at 1,452.33 on the U.S. dollar.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng index declined 0.33% in the final hour of trade, while the mainland China's CSI 300 index edged up slightly to close at 3,945.46.
— Anniek Bao
The Fed's expectations of inflationary pressures from the incoming Trump administration's policies could benefit crypto prices in the long term, according to Galaxy's Chris Rhine.
"While cryptocurrencies are experiencing a short-term sell-off alongside equities, this shift ultimately supports the cryptocurrency sector, traditionally viewed as a hedge against inflation and monetary debasement," said Rhine, portfolio manager for the actively managed SPDR Galaxy ETFs.
"The broader driver for digital asset markets remains the increasing likelihood of greater adoption as an asset class, aided by regulatory progress and political support," he added. "Short-term sell-offs should be seen as buying opportunities, as many investors are waiting on the sidelines for a pullback."
Bitcoin was last lower by more than 5% at $100,953.25, according to Coin Metrics. The broader crypto market, as measured by the CoinDesk 20 index, lost more than 7%.
— Tanaya Macheel
Here are some of the stocks that made moves in after-hours trading on Thursday:
Micron Technology shares plunged 15% after the chipmaker posted disappointing guidance for the second quarter. Still, the company posted in-line revenue results and beat quarterly earnings expectations, posting adjusted earnings per share of $1.79 on revenue of $8.71 billion, while analysts polled by LSEG forecasted earnings of $1.75 per share.Lamb Weston shares dipped 3.5% as the food processing company continues to be under pressure from an activist investor to sell itself to Post Holdings.Shares of homebuilder Lennar sank 8.4%. The company reported a profit of $4.06 a share, while analysts surveyed by FactSet had called for earnings of $4.15 a share. Higher mortgage rates, from higher interest rates, in the most recent quarter impacted the company's performance.— Pia Singh
Nvidia fell 1% on Wednesday and fell for a fifth straight day for the first time since September 2023.
The moves added to Nvidia's roughly 4% week-to-date loss and nearly 7% drop since the start of December. The market bellwether had been up by more than 4% earlier in the session Wednesday.
Shares of Nvidia have jumped more than 160% since the start of 2024.
Nvidia falls for a fifth straight day
— Samantha Subin
Stock futures were little changed on Wednesday night, after the market plunge from the earlier session.
Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average opened roughly 60 points higher, or 0.14%. S&P 500 futures were just above flat, while Nasdaq 100 futures opened 0.1% lower shortly after 6 p.m. ET.
— Pia Singh
