US open: Markets edge forward after Thursday's decline
US stocks rose slightly on Friday, as the markets tried to put the biggest decline since April, on Thursday, behind them.
Juniper Networks Inc.
$34.95
11:09 25/04/24
Symantec Corp.
$20.55
13:00 25/04/24
Data released on Friday showed that import prices fell 0.5% month-on-month in September, slightly better than the 0.7% drop analysts had anticipated.
The decline was driven mainly by petroleum products, which fell 2.0% on the month, while non-petroleum import prices decreased 0.2%.
Total import prices fell 0.9% year-on-year, a larger drop than the -0.1% fall seen in the previous month, while non-petroleum import prices increased 0.7% from the corresponding period 12 months ago, dropping off slightly from the 0.9% hike in August, which was its highest in nearly three years.
Consumer goods import prices, excluding automobiles, rose 0.9% year-on-year, up from 0.8% in August.
“Import price deflation has pushed down on core consumer goods prices over the past two years,” analysts at Barclays said in a note.
“They are now rising modestly, suggesting this weight is easing, although further strengthening in the dollar could change this picture in the coming months.”
In corporate news, Tesla Motors unveiled its latest Model S car late on Thursday but slid significantly early in the session, while Juniper Networks fell after announcing on Thursday that third-quarter revenue and adjusted earnings are likely to come in below its previous estimates.
Symantec shares dropped slightly after the software maker announced late on Thursday that it plans to split itself into two publicly traded companies, while Exact Sciences shares rallied as the firm’s Cologuard test to detect colo-rectal cancer will be covered by Medicare.
Alpha Pro Tech soared as high as 32%, while Lakeland Industries rose sharply on the back of gains from Thursday, as the protective clothing companies benefited from growing concerns over the possibility of an Ebola outbreak.
Gold futures lost 0.4% to $1,220.20 an ounce, while the dollar rose marginally against the pound, euro and yen after registering a new three-week low on Thursday.
The price of West Texas Intermediate crude continued to lose ground, dropping almost 1% and trading at just over $85 a barrel.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury note was largely unchanged at 2.32%, while the yield on the 30-year Treasury bond was marginally down to 3.05% and the yield on the five-year Treasury note was stable at 1.57%.