On Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was trending down in morning hours as investors keep an eye on several upcoming speeches from members of the U.S. Federal Reserve. Although the probability of an interest rate hike remains low for September, Fed officials continue to argue the case for just the second change to monetary policy in a decade.
On Thursday, the Dow slipped more than 46 points after the European Central Bank said it will leave its benchmark interest rate unchanged and that it anticipates low rates to remain for an "extended period."
Let's take a look at Thursday's Stock Market Numbers:
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Dow Jones: 18,479.91; -46.23; -0.25%
S&P 500: 2,181.30; -4.86; -0.22%
Nasdaq: 5,259.48; -24.44; -0.46%
Investors are going to be listening for clues into the timing of the next interest rate hike. A recent string of disappointing economic data has left investors totally in the dark about whether there will be a September Federal Reserve rate hike. Here's when we expect the next rate hike.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average projected a 97-point decline as investors digest the latest comments from Boston Federal Reserve Bank President Eric Rosengren. This morning, the Fed official said that continued low interest rates have the potential to fuel an overheating domestic economy. Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas President Rob Kaplan speaks later this morning.
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Oil prices were pulling back after huge gains on Thursday.
On Thursday, the Energy Information Administration announced a massive drawdown of crude inventories last week. U.S. inventory levels fell by 14.5 million barrels. That is the single largest weekly decline in crude stocks since January 1999.
This morning, the WTI crude price was off 1.4%, while Brent crude fell 1.5%.
Investors are keeping a close eye on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (NYSE: CMG). Yesterday, the company announced that it has settled cases with more than 100 customers who became sick during its foodborne illness outbreak in 2015. The news comes a day after activist investor Bill Ackman's hedge fund announced a large stake in the company and plans to shake up the company. We're not buying into the hype surrounding the Chipotle stock price after Ackman's involvement in the firm. [Editor's Note: Here's why we recommend investors avoid this stock.]
But the big news this morning comes from Libertarian Party presidential candidate Gary Johnson. On Thursday, Johnson made an embarrassing gaffe after asking "What is Aleppo" during an interview with MSNBC. The candidate failed to know that Aleppo is the epicenter of the ongoing crisis in Syria. Johnson has roughly 9% support for the upcoming election and is vying for an opportunity to take part in the debates this fall. Here's more on Johnson's gaffe.
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About the Author
Garrett Baldwin is a globally recognized research economist, financial writer, consultant, and political risk analyst with decades of trading experience and degrees in economics, cybersecurity, and business from Johns Hopkins, Purdue, Indiana University, and Northwestern.