Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on July 26, 2023 in New York City.
Spencer Platt | Getty Images
Here are the most important news items that investors need to start their trading day:
1. Unlucky No. 13
The Dow Jones Industrial Average snapped its winning streak on Thursday after a 13-day run, falling 0.7% on the session. It was the longest win streak for the index since 1987. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite also finished lower, shedding around 0.6% each. All three indexes are still up for the week, but barely. On Friday, investors will be watching closely for June personal consumption expenditures data, the Federal Reserve’s favorite inflation gauge. Follow live market updates.
2. Rising GDP
People shop in a Manhattan store on July 27, 2023 in New York City.
Spencer Platt | Getty Images News | Getty Images
The U.S. economy continues to defy recession fears. Gross domestic product grew at an annualized rate of 2.4% during the second quarter, according to the latest readout from the Commerce Department, stronger growth than the first quarter and above the 2% rate that economists polled by Dow Jones were expecting. That impressive Q2 pace was fueled in part by consumer spending, which — despite a pullback from recent growth rates — increased 1.6% during the period and accounted for 68% of total economic activity.
3. EVs not so E-Z
An electric Ford truck is displayed during the Electrify Expo In D.C. on July 23, 2023 in Washington, DC.
Nathan Howard | Getty Images
Ford Motor pushed back EV production targets and warned of widening losses on the vehicles, saying adoption has been slower than expected. Part of the problem is pricing, according to CFO John Lawler. Ford earlier this month lowered prices on its electric F-150 Lightning pickup, partially reversing several price increases in recent years. “The transition to EVs is happening, it just may take a little longer,” Lawler said after the automaker’s second-quarter results, which beat Wall Street expectations, fueled by strong pricing and demand for Ford’s traditional and commercial vehicles.
4. Scorched
A woman shades herself from the sun as she tries to keep cool along the Brooklyn Bridge during a heat wave on July 27, 2023 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City.
Spencer Platt | Getty Images News | Getty Images
It’s a summer like no other (to a degree). With record temperatures spanning the globe, July is shaping up to be the hottest month on record, according to data released by space and weather divisions of the European Union and the United Nations. It surpasses a previous record set in 2019 and comes after last month registered as the hottest June ever. The rising temperatures, including in the Earth’s oceans, prompted United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres to declare, “The era of global warming has ended; the era of global boiling has arrived.”
5. McDouble
1980s McDonald’s Commercial screenshot featuring CosMc.
Source: McDonald’s | YouTube
Fast food giant McDonald’s will test a new, smaller-footprint spinoff restaurant chain called CosMc’s, executives announced Thursday alongside second-quarter results. The chain is named after a one-time McDonaldland mascot, CosMc, who appeared in company advertisements in the 1980s and 1990s. CEO Chris Kempczinski said the restaurant will have “the DNA of McDonald’s, but with its own unique personality.” The company will test the concept early next year, at a handful of locations in a “limited geography.”
– CNBC’s Alex Harring, Jeff Cox, John Rosevear, Michael Wayland, Catherine Clifford and Amelia Lucas contributed to this report.
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