Dow Jones News Today: Stocks Fall as Trump Threatens North Korea with 'Fire and Fury'

The Dow Jones news today features stocks dropping after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened North Korea with "fire and fury" if they continue to threaten the United States. Dow Jones futures are down 32 points as North Korea immediately responded by threatening U.S. military bases in Guam. Experts are concerned about Trump's impact on U.S. credibility, while markets are growing more concerned about a full-blown nuclear crisis on the Korean Peninsula.

Here are the numbers from Tuesday for the Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq:

Index Previous Close Point Change Percentage Change
Dow Jones 22,085.34 -33.08 -0.15%
S&P 500 2,474.92 -5.99 -0.24%
Nasdaq 6,370.46 -13.31 -0.21%

Now here's a closer look at today's most important market events and stocks, plus Wednesday's economic calendar.

The Five Top Stock Market Stories for Wednesday

  • Global markets are under pressure after North Korea escalated tensions over its nuclear program. Investors have been shifting to safe-haven assets. Gold prices ticked up more than 1%, while the Swiss franc was pushing higher. Meanwhile, another apparent terror attack hit France this morning. Several people were injured when a car rammed several French soldiers. Here's a recap of global markets this morning.
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What to Expect from North Korea

  • Earnings season will continue today. Shares of Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS) were off more than 4.7% after the company fell well short of Wall Street revenue expectations. The global entertainment giant reported earnings per share (EPS) of $1.58, beating expectations by three cents. However, revenue slipped below consensus expectations. The company's ESPN franchise continues to shed subscribers as more Americans cut the cable cord and shift toward streaming services. The company shot back by announcing plans to pull its movies off Netflix Inc. (Nasdaq: NFLX) starting in 2019. Disney will launch its own streaming service. Shares of NFLX stock were off more than 4% this morning.
  • The U.S. Federal Reserve is back in focus following Tuesday's positive jobs report. Today, Chicago Federal Reserve Bank President Charles Evans will speak in a closed-door meeting with the financial media. Evans is expected to speak on the state of the U.S. economy and monetary policy. Evans will likely face questions on his recent statements regarding the impact of Amazon.com Inc. (Nasdaq: AMZN) on inflation, the central bank's plans regarding interest rates, and President Trump's proposed duty on Chinese aluminum.
  • Crude oil prices were pushing higher ahead of today's inventory report from the Energy Information Administration. The U.S. agency is expected to report another decline in U.S. crude stocks, a day after Saudi Arabia pledged to cut additional exports in order to support prices. The WTI crude oil price today added 0.6%. Brent crude gained 0.6%.

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Three Stocks to Watch Today: WEN, VNTV, ODP

  • Shares of The Wendy's Co. (NYSE: WEN) were flat in premarket hours despite news that the fast food chain topped Wall Street earnings expectations before the bell Wednesday. The firm reported EPS of $0.15 on top of $320.3 million in revenue. Analysts expected EPS of $0.13 on top of $298.7 million.
  • In deal news, shares of Vantiv Inc. (NYSE: VNTV) were flat in premarket hours on news that it will purchase British payment giant Worldpay Group Plc. (LON: WPG) for roughly $10 billion. The credit card-processing giant will establish a $29 billion global payments behemoth in the process.

dow jones news today

  • Shares of Office Depot Inc. (Nasdaq: ODP) plunged nearly 24% after the company fell well short of Wall Street earnings expectations. The company reported a second-quarter profit of $24 million, or $0.06 per share. Wall Street had expected EPS of $0.09.
  • Look for additional earnings reports from Jack in the Box Inc. (Nasdaq: JACK), Stratasys Ltd. (Nasdaq: SSYS), Sina Corp. (Nasdaq: SINA), and Mobileye NV (Nasdaq: MBLY).

Wednesday's U.S. Economic Calendar (all times EDT)

  • MBA Mortgage Applications at 7 a.m.
  • Productivity and Costs at 8:30 a.m.
  • Wholesale Trade at 10 a.m.
  • EIA Petroleum Status Report at 10:30 a.m.
  • Chicago Federal Reserve Bank President Charles Evans Speaks at 1 p.m.
  • 10-Year Note Auction at 1 p.m.

Up Next: The Four Best Silver Investments This Year (and Why You Need Them in Your Portfolio Today)

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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.

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