The markets were lower again today though they did close off their lows of the session. Investors responded to more Chinese comments that seem to suggest there is no promise of a trade deal anytime soon. The Dow 30 closed down 224 the S&P 500 sold off 19, closing above the 200 day moving average, and the Nasdaq closed the day lower by 60.
In addition to the Chinese tough talk, bond yields fell again today which prompted Morgan Stanley to suggest that the inversion has now hit a point where recession is now headed for the U.S. economy.
Retail was one area of the market that was hit the hardest (and has been hit the hardest) as more and more retailers miss earnings expectations at the tail end of earnings season. Capri Holdings (NASDAQ: CPRI) which is the parent company of Michael Kors shares broke to new 52 week lows on lowered guidance. Dicks Sporting Goods (NYSE: DKS) shares were also weak on the day after their earnings results did not include any tariff assumptions in it.
Consumer staples (NYSE: XLP) had yet another day of weakness following the sort of surprise selloff yesterday. Typically this sector can weather any talk of economic weakness but yesterday showed it is not immune either. The sector has now fallen almost 4% in just two weeks.
Tomorrow, investors will look at a few more earnings releases from retailers like Dollar General (NYSE: DG), Dollar Tree (NASDAQ: DLTR), Costco (NASDAQ: COST) and Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ: ULTA). Expect there to be plenty of focus around the first earnings announcement from Uber (NASDAQ: UBER) since going public as well. The CEO commented overnight that the company will not likely be profitable this year or next. Wall Street expects them to show a loss of $1.49 per share.