United States benchmark averages were mixed on Wednesday (Thursday AEDT), with the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average declining from yesterday’s records as defence and energy stocks dropped.
The S&P 500 finished 0.3% lower at 6,920.93, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.9% to 48,996.08 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.2% to 23,584.28.
The S&P and the Dow reached new records and rose to new all-time highs earlier in the session before dropping.
The S&P 500’s defence index lost 2.1% as U.S. President Donald Trump said defence companies would not be permitted to issue dividends or stock buybacks unless they sped up production.
“Defense Contractors are currently issuing massive Dividends to their Shareholders and massive Stock Buybacks, at the expense and detriment of investing in Plants and Equipment,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “This situation will no longer be allowed or tolerated!”
Shares in Lockheed Martin shed 4.8%, Northrop Grumman fell 5.5%, and General Dynamics declined 4.2%. RTX and Boeing also dipped 2.5% and 0.7% respectively.
Energy stocks also fell, with the S&P 500’s energy index down 1.2%. ExxonMobil shares shed 2.1%, while Chevron dipped 0.9% and ConocoPhillips dropped 3.3%.
Although oil major shares rallied earlier in the week following the U.S. attack on Venezuela, these stocks reversed much of their gains with losses yesterday. Oil refiners Valero Energy and Marathon Petroleum were up 3.1% and 1.2% today, however, after CNBC reported the U.S. plans for Venezuela to export sanctioned oil indefinitely.
The U.S. Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) report found job openings decreased by 303,000 to 7.15 million in November, a 14-month low. Hiring and layoffs fell slightly.
U.S. two-year bond yields were up 0.01% to 3.480% while 10-year yields were flat at 4.154%.
