The markets were slightly lower to start the day and then accelerated to the downside on a slew of news from some of the big market leaders. Ultimately the Dow 30 closed the day lower by 395, the S&P 500 sold off 45 and the Nasdaq 100 sold off the most, closing lower by 219 points, or 3.03%.
Sector News
Semiconductors were a weak area today as many of the bigger components sold off. The chip space has been widely reported as "softening" and today's article from the Wall Street Journal about Apple cutting production certainly does not help. The sector is now lower by about 6% on the year.
Stock News
Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) shares were lower on the day which held back the broad markets as the company was reportedly cutting it's production of the newest version of their iPhones. The Wall Street Journal reported the story and said that all their models has made it difficult for suppliers to predict how many components they would need to produce the various versions. Apple is now lower by about 25% since hitting a high back in September.
JD.com (NYSE: JD) shares sold off again today, moving towards 52-week lows as the company reported earnings. Revenues were the focus today as the company missed Wall Street's expectations. Shares are now lower by about 50% on the year, hinting at making new lows.
Boeing (NYSE: BA) shares were lower on the day as the company issued a statement saying that they continually incorporate lessons, and improvements from the various incidents around the world. This comes as investigators are looking into what caused the recent crash in Indonesia which many speculate had to do with flight control sensors on the new 737 max.