The main US stock indices declined moderately, weighed down by fears of a trade war with the US, although the growth in shares in the technology sector helped limit losses.
The focus was also on the United States. As it became known, in July Americans spent more of their incomes than last month, which indicates that the economy will have a stable dynamics in the second half of the year. Personal spending - or how much Americans spend on goods and services, such as groceries and healthcare - rose 0.4% in seasonally adjusted terms in July, compared with a month earlier, the Commerce Department reported. This reflected a steady increase, although not as strong as in the spring. Personal incomes, reflecting the income of Americans from salaries and investments, increased by 0.3%.
However, the number of workers in the United States who applied for unemployment benefits rose slightly last week after three consecutive weeks of decline, although the more stable level of appeals reached its lowest level in the last five decades. Primary applications for unemployment benefits, the rate of layoffs in all US states, increased by 3,000 to 213,000, seasonally adjusted for the week to August 25, the Ministry of Labor said. Economists predicted 214,000 new applications for unemployment benefits last week.
Most of the components of DOW finished trading in the red (26 of 30). Outsider were shares of Caterpillar Inc. (CAT, -2.11%). The leader of growth was the shares of Apple Inc. (AAPL, + 0.91%).
Almost all S & P sectors recorded a decline. The largest drop was shown by the sector of industrial goods (-0.9%). Only the conglomerate sector grew (+ 0.2%),
At closing:
Dow 25,986.92 -137.65 -0.53%
S & P 500 2,901.13 -12.91 -0.44%
Nasdaq 100 8,088.36 -21.32 -0.26%