Page 25 - AT

BUSINESS Thursday 24 OcTOber 2019
A25

US stocks tick closer to records after mixed profit reports

By STAN CHOE 10% or more, according to
Associated Press FactSet.
NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. But analysts are forecasting
stock indexes ticked closer stronger growth for com-
to their records following munications companies
a mixed set of earnings re- and businesses that sell to
ports Wednesday, where consumers, which have
some big companies been the strongest part of
topped Wall Street's expec- the economy.
tations and others warned OVERSEAS: In Europe, Ger-
that the slowing global many's DAX rose 0.3% while
economy and trade ten- France's CAC 40 was virtu-
sions are hitting their profits. ally flat. London's FTSE 100
The S&P 500 flipped be- rose 0.7% after British law-
tween small gains and loss- makers approved a deal
es in early trading, much for the country to leave the
like it has been the past European Union, but reject-
couple weeks. It's within ed fast-tracking it through
about 1% of its record, set parliament, raising the
in July. prospect of another delay
Overseas stock markets to the Oct. 31 Brexit date.
were mixed as the United The president of the Euro-
Kingdom's pending exit pean Council, Donald Tusk,
from the European Union said he would recommend
appeared set for yet an- the other 27 nations in the
other delay. In this Oct. 2, 2019, file photo specialist Peter Mazza works on the floor of the New York Stock Ex- trade bloc grant Britain's
Treasury yields fell and con- change. request for an extension to
tinued their nearly yearlong Associated Press the deadline.
decline. its weaker-than-expected profit for the latest quarter. much profit they made The date could be pushed
Health care stocks helped profit for the latest quarter. Eli Lilly also dragged on the from July through Septem- back to the end of January
lead U.S. indexes higher, On the losing end was market despite reporting ber, and analysts are still but the country could also
powered in part by Thermo Texas Instruments, which stronger profit than Wall forecasting the index will face a general election in
Fisher Scientific, which re- said its customers have be- Street expected. Analysts end up showing a drop in that time, raising some new
ported stronger-than-ex- come far more cautious pointed to weakness in a earnings per share from a uncertainties around the
pected profits and raised than they were even 90 couple key medications year earlier. whole process.
its forecast for full-year rev- days ago, with trade ten- for the drugmaker, and its If they're right, it would be In Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225
enue and profit. Medical sions a big factor. stock lost 3.5%. the first time earnings have rose 0.3%, the Kospi in South
device company Boston It reported stronger profits KEEPING SCORE: The S&P dropped for three straight Korea fell 0.4% and the
Scientific also jumped to for the latest quarter than 500 was up 5 points, or quarters since 2015-16, ac- Hang Seng in Hong Kong
one of the biggest gains analysts expected, but its 0.2%, at 3,001 as of 11:42 cording to FactSet. lost 0.8%.
in the S&P 500 after report- forecast for this quarter fell a.m. Earlier in the morning, The weakest results are ex- ENERGY: Benchmark U.S.
ing a bigger profit than ex- short of their estimates. It it had been down 0.2%. pected to come from com- crude rose 70 cents to
pected. lost 6.5%. The Dow Jones Industrial panies that are reliant on $55.18 per barrel. Brent
Boeing climbed 2.6% after Caterpillar, another com- Average climbed 69 points, the strength of the global crude, the international
it said its 737 Max airplane pany whose fortunes are or 0.3%, to 26,857, and the economy, which has been benchmark, climbed 60
may return to service by the seen on Wall Street as Nasdaq composite added slowing amid trade wars. cents to $60.30 per barrel.
end of the year and that it closely tied to President 0.2%. Raw-material producers, YIELDS: The yield on the
will gradually increase 737 Donald Trump's trade wars, EARNINGS: Roughly a quar- technology companies 10-year Treasury dipped
production by late 2020. dipped 0.5% after report- ter of companies in the S&P and energy stocks are pre- to 1.75% from 1.76% late
That helped make up for ing weaker-than-expected 500 have reported how dicted to report drops of Tuesday.q