Markets paused on Tuesday as all three major indexes declined. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 61.56 points, or 0.15%, while the S&P 500 fell 0.2% and the Nasdaq Composite slid 0.33%. Tuesday’s losses ended an eight-day winning streak for the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite. If the S&P 500 had ended with a gain on Tuesday, it would have been the longest winning streak since 2004. Investors are focusing on the minutes from the Federal Reserve’s July policy meeting scheduled for Wednesday.
Target did better than expected in the second quarter, beating Wall Street’s expectations for earnings and revenue. Sales grew by about 3%, largely due to increased discretionary purchases on items like clothing. The company saw its shares rise by more than 10% in premarket trading. Despite this positive growth, Target maintained its full-year sales forecast the same and issued a cautious note predicting a lower end of the estimated range for comparable sales for the full year.
The weekly mortgage refinance rates have come back down after a spike the previous week. The Mortgage Bankers Association reported a 15% decrease in applications to refinance home loans, with mortgage rates dropping to 6.5%. Although the rates are falling, most borrowers who already own homes have rates below 5%. Notably, the 30-year fixed rate has fallen by 32 basis points in the last four weeks and is 81 basis points lower than it was a year ago.
General Motors is launching an electric Sierra pickup truck through its premium GMC brand in hopes of leading the electric pickup truck market. To achieve this goal, the Sierra EV will have to outsell competitors like the Chevrolet Silverado EV and models from Ford Motor, Rivian Automotive, and Tesla. The electric truck market is still in the early stages, but the Sierra EV joins GMC’s electric truck lineup alongside electric versions of the Hummer.
The fast fashion industry is seeing increased competition as Shein has sued its rival Temu for allegedly stealing designs and operating at a loss. Shein also accused Temu of using trademark infringement to make up for its losses. Previously, Shein has faced copyright allegations from independent artists and brands, including Levi Strauss and H&M. Temu had also sued Shein last year over copyright issues and coercion of suppliers into exclusivity agreements.
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