Stocks were mixed on Wall Street Wednesday, as indexes drifted between small gains and losses through a quiet day of trading.
The S&P 500 edged down by 1.55, or less than 0.1%, to 4,376.86. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 74.08 points, or 0.2%, to 33,852.66, while the Nasdaq composite rose 36.08, or 0.3%, to 13,591.75.
General Mills fell to one of the market's larger drops after the maker of Cheerios and Haagen-Dazs reported weaker revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected. It sank 5.2% despite reporting stronger profit than expected and giving a forecast for upcoming results that was close to Wall Street’s.
Other food companies also fell, including drops of 4% for Hershey, 3.7% for J.M. Smucker and 3.5% for Conagra Brands.
On the winning side of Wall Street was AeroVironment, which rose 4.9%. The maker of unmanned aircraft, tactical missile systems and other equipment used by the U.S. military and in Ukraine reported stronger profit and revenue for the latest quarter than expected. It also gave a stronger forecast for upcoming results than analysts expected amid what it called a record backlog.
Cruise operators also steamed ahead, continuing a strong year built on expectations for healthy demand for vacations. Carnival jumped 8.8% for the biggest gain in the S&P 500 and has more than doubled so far this year. Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings gained 7.6%, and Royal Caribbean Group gained 1.7%.
A day earlier, other travel-related stocks helped lead the market after Delta Air Lines said it's still seeing pent-up demand from fliers looking to make up for lost time during the pandemic.
Elsewhere in markets, trading was relatively quiet. Stock indexes rose in Europe and were mixed in Asia. Treasury yields fell.
The big question for markets worldwide is whether economies will continue to be able to avoid falling into recession despite the weight of much higher interest rates meant to bring down inflation.
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell reiterated Wednesday that stubborn inflation means interest rates will need to stay high. The Fed has said it expects to raise rates one or two more times this year, while the European Central Bank and others have sounded even more aggressive.
But heads of Western central banks speaking at a conference in Portugal also said their economies have been more resilient than expected and they don’t foresee a contraction.
For now, the U.S. economy has been holding up better than expected thanks in large part to a remarkably resilient job market. Strong reports on consumer confidence, sales of new homes and other areas of the economy on Tuesday helped lead to a 1.1% rally for the S&P 500. Earlier this month, the S&P 500 reached its highest level since April 2022.
“Following some early week jitters, we’ve now seen a return to business-as-usual in global equities. Markets are taking some comfort from U.S. economic indicators which are showing no signs of an imminent ‘hard landing’ with regard to growth,” Tim Waterer, chief market analyst at KCM Trade, said in a report.
Economists are increasingly hopeful a recession may be avoidable, delayed, or that contraction may be limited to specific sectors and not the entire economy.
In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 3.70% from 3.77% late Tuesday. It helps set rates for mortgages and other important loans.
The two-year yield, which moves more on expectations for the Fed, sank to 4.70% from 4.76%.
In Europe, stock indexes rose with France's CAC 40 leading the way with a 1% gain.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 jumped 2% as the weakening value of the Japanese yen benefits exporters from the country. Stock indexes elsewhere in Asia moved more modestly and were mixed.
AP Business Writers Yuri Kageyama and Matt Ott contributed.
The merger of WarnerMedia and Discovery received Justice Department approval on Wednesday, and Patty Hirsch, EVP of consumer and digital platforms at WarnerMedia, joined Cheddar News to discuss current and future offerings from the media conglomerate that will control both HBO Max and Discovery+. "Content really drives so much, and CNN has always had a very long history of creating an incredible documentaries, incredible content … and this service I think is going to ultimately provide the kind of content consumers want and the kind of content that consumers are going are going to pay for," she said. Hirsch also discussed NFTs in use through its Turner Sports and DC brands.
Black entrepreneurs lead the way in the creation of new businesses, but they often cannot get the necessary funding to get their business off the ground. The Fearless Fund is on a mission to change that, and help Black business owners get venture capital. The fund also offers a unique grant program meant to help entrepreneurs with growth, peer coaching, and more, including grants between $10,000 and $20,000. Arian Simone, Co-Founder and General Partner of Fearless Fund, joins Closing Bell to discuss the Fund's mission, how it helps Black entrepreneurs, and more.
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Sting has sold his catalog of more than 600 songs for $300 million to Universal Music. The deal gives the label the rights to all of his work, including “Every Breath You Take," as well as all future royalties.
Miller Lite is opening the first branded bar in the metaverse, by way of Decentraland, as a way to advertise during the Super Bowl this year without buying an expensive TV commercial slot. Sofia Colucci, global vice president of Miller Family of Brands, joined Cheddar to talk about the new marketing concept. "We have a lot of great partnerships with NFL teams throughout the year but were shut out of advertising during the Super Bowl game, so this pushes us to think creatively and also think of what feels really relevant right now," Colucci said. "There's no question that there's a lot of excitement with the metaverse, and we wanted to participate but in a way that felt right for Miller Lite."
Plans to add affordable housing to a development in Yellow Springs, Ohio, were squashed after comedian Dave Chappelle and other community members spoke out against the project. Chappelle threatened to pull the plug on his local comedy club and restaurant projects if the development had been approved.
Jason Moser, Senior Analyst at The Motley Fool, joined Wake Up With Cheddar to talk about the big takeaways from Disney's Q1 report, which showed the company nearing 130 million Disney+ subscribers as parks revenue ticks up.
The airline industry is seeing a major consolidation as Frontier and Spirit Airlines have agreed to merge in a deal valued at $6.6 billion dollars. Frontier will control just over 51% of the company, and Spirit will control the other 48%, creating what would become the fifth-largest airline in the U.S. The deal was approved over the weekend, with Spirit CEO Ted Christie saying that the merger aims to create an aggressive, low-fare competitor focused on consumer-friendly pricing. John Grant, Senior Analyst at OAG explains the gravity of the merger, and the wider impact it could have on competition and the airline industry as a whole.
