NEW YORK (dpa-AFX) – The US stock exchanges slipped significantly on Friday after an inconsistent start. The courses thus tied in with the profit-taking of the previous day, which, however, was significantly lower. In view of the high valuations and mostly disappointing economic data, even mixed business figures from the banking sector and the economic stimulus package promised by US President-elect Joe Biden, as expected, did not give investors any arguments to buy. In addition, US stock market trading paused on Monday because of Martin Luther King Day – before the long weekend and Biden’s swearing-in on Wednesday, many investors apparently did not want to take the risk
The leading index Dow Jones Industrial expanded its initially moderate losses and recently lost 0.72 percent to 30,768.93 points. This shows that he has recovered somewhat from the daily low, but is heading for a weekly minus of around 1 percent. For the market-wide S&P 500 it was most recently 0.80 percent to 3765.36 points down. The technology-heavy selection index Nasdaq 100 turned after modest initial gains in the red and lost 0.54 percent to 12,829.18 points.
The shares of the banks, which reported on their business development on Friday, could not escape the negative market environment. However, the price losses were different.
JPMorgan’s paper held up comparatively well after a recent strong run with a minus of almost two and a half percent. The largest US financial institution surprised in the final quarter of 2020 with a profit jump to previously unknown heights. Instead of putting more money aside for endangered loans as expected by analysts, the bank even released provisions in the billions. But even without this step, JPMorgan would have increased profits more than experts expected.
In contrast, competitor Citigroup reported a significant drop in profits, which caused the shares to plummet by around four and a half percent. Wells Fargo was not doing well either. The institute’s quarterly profit was four percent higher than a year earlier. But at that time legal costs had ruined the result. Accordingly, the shares have now lost seven and a half percent.
The shares of the oil companies suffered from the significant drop in the price of the important raw material. In the Dow, Chevron was one of the biggest losers with minus 2.3 percent. Outside the benchmark index, Exxon Mobil even went down by over four percent. A report by the Wall Street Journal, according to which the US Securities and Exchange Commission is investigating the company, also weighed down. The reason for this is supposed to be a complaint from a whistleblower about a too high rating of a funding facility./gl/he
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