Good Evening! U.S. equities fell on Tuesday as the possibility of rising interest rates for a longer period of time and disappointing results from big-box retailers dimmed the mood on Wall Street as the holiday-shortened week began.
The S&P 500 plummeted 2.00%, going below the critical 4,000 mark, meanwhile the Dow Jones lost 2.06%. The Nasdaq Composite fell 2.50%.
50 TIMES IN A ROW
Walmart (WMT) shares have recovered from early losses and are gaining after the nation’s largest brick-and-mortar retailer reported excellent fourth-quarter fiscal 2023 performance and boosted its dividend, but offered a weaker-than-expected outlook as inflation hurts consumer spending.
- Revenue: $162.74 Billion vs. $158.67 Billion Expected
- Earnings Per Share: $1.71 vs. $1.51 Expected
Going Foward… CEO Doug McMillon & Executives at Walmart noted that food inflation remained “stubborn,” making it “hard to call” how this category would perform in the second half of the year. As a result, the corporation intends to maintain a cautious attitude. However, McMillon underlined that there are many unknowns around the possibility of a recession and that he intends to give the best value to retain consumers regardless of the situation.
Did you know… Walmart announced a $0.04 dividend increase to $2.28 per share. That was the 50th year in a row that Walmart increased its dividend.
ITC SAYS NO!
According to the US Trade Representative’s office, The Biden Administration said they will not overturn a US International Trade Commission (ITC) judgment that may exclude imports of Apple Inc’s Apple Watches for violating AliveCor Inc patents relating to heart monitoring.
What is all of this about? The ITC determined in December that imports of Apple’s smartwatches should be prohibited for violating AliveCor’s patents, but it put the restriction on hold while related patent procedures proceeded.
Why is that? The patents were declared invalid by the US Patent and Trademark Office earlier that month, a decision that AliveCor has said it would fight.
What if the Biden administration does change its mind? Historically, presidential vetoes of ITC import prohibitions have been uncommon. Nevertheless, in 2013, the Obama administration restored a restriction on some iPhones and iPads in a patent dispute between Apple and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd, noting the consequences on US consumers and economic competitiveness. Based on policy considerations, the White House has 60 days to determine whether to reject the ITC’s Dec. 22 verdict.