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The Dow Jones today started in the red as investors continued to pile out of tech stocks. Shares of Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) fell by more than 14.7% after the stock was not included in S&P 500 index changes. The timing also complements news that Tesla has completed another sale of $5 billion in common stock.
Here's everything moving the Dow Jones now.
First, the numbers from Monday for the Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq:
| Index | Previous Close | Point Change | Percentage Change |
| Dow Jones | 28,133.31 | -159.42 | -0.56 |
| S&P 500 | 3,426.96 | -28.10 | -0.81 |
| Nasdaq | 11,313.13 | -144.97 | -1.27 |
Now here are what I think will be the most important market events and stocks on Tuesday morning.
The Top Stock Market Stories for Tuesday
On the coronavirus front, the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington projects that the number of U.S. deaths will surpass 410,000 by January. The university warned that the death toll could double in just a few short months as Americans face the fall and winter flu season. The IHME model says that the death toll could top 620,000 if states fail to introduce restrictions.
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- Meanwhile, oil prices slumped again after Saudi Arabia made its largest monthly price cuts for Asian nations in five months. Ongoing optimism for a demand recovery is fading around the globe, and a weaker dollar is one of the factors that is helping support crude prices. Various analysts have projected that another large slump could soon come with the U.S. peak demand season ending and news that China has been cutting its purchases of crude. Asia remains Saudi Arabia's largest sales market, according to OPEC.
- Finally, Democrats and Republicans failed to find common ground on a new round of COVID-19 stimulus. Both sides broke off talks last month, but lawmakers are now returning from their August recess. With that in mind, U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said over the weekend that Congress and the Trump administration planned to fund the government through December to avoid another government shutdown. Funds to keep the government open were previously expected to run out on Sept. 30.
Stocks to Watch Today: WFC, BRK.B, AAPL
- Shares of Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC) were off 1.5% after Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE: BRK.B) slashed its stake in the bank to just 3.3%. A filing with the SEC says that Warren Buffett's company cut its stake by about 100 million shares from June to roughly 137.6 million.
- Investors in Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM) are starting to worry about the financial health of the company. Shares were off 1.8% on news that the oil giant is facing a $48 billion shortfall through the end of 2021. A report by Reuters said that the company had made a number of poorly timed wagers that the global economy would see an uptick in crude demand. The shortfall has many investors concerned that Exxon many need to cut its dividend in the near future.
- Shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) were off 5.5% despite positive news on its manufacturing front. The company will begin producing 5G phones in September, according to the Nikkei news service. The company could produce upwards of 74 million units in 2020. While that is short of its 2020 production target of 80 million, the figure is still an improvement from its revised figures to incorporate production delays from the second quarter.
- Look for earnings reports from Coupa Software Inc. (NASDAQ: COUP), Lululemon Athletica Inc. (NASDAQ: LULU), and Slack Technologies Inc. (NYSE: WORK).
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About the Author
Garrett Baldwin is a globally recognized research economist, financial writer, and consultant with degrees from Northwestern, Johns Hopkins, Purdue, and Indiana University. He is a seasoned financial and political risk analyst, with a focus on stocks, hedge funds, private equity, blockchain, and housing policy. He has conducted risk assessment projects for clients in 27 countries, and consulted on policy and financial operations for some of the nation's largest financial institutions, including a $1.5 trillion credit fund, a $43 billion credit and auto loan giant, as well as two of the largest Wall Street banks by assets under management.
Garrett joined Money Map Press as an economist and researcher in 2011, specializing in alternative strategies with an emphasis on fundamental and technical analysis.