US close: Wall Street recovers as investors bet on rate cut
US markets reversed their earlier fortunes to finish higher by the close of trading on Thursday, as investors digested the Institute for Supply Management's closely-followed services sector gauge, which hit a three-year low.
Mounting evidence that the economy was hitting a rough patch was leading investors to bet on the Federal Reserve cutting interest rates at its meeting later in the month.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended the session up 0.47% at 26,201.04, the S&P 500 added 0.8% to 2,910.63, and the Nasdaq 100 was 1.16% higher at 7,638.39.
At the open, the Dow was 91.16 points lower, and had looked hellbent on adding to the 838-point drop recorded over the previous two sessions.
Weighing on sentiment earlier in the session was news that the World Trade Organisation had given Washington the green light to impose tariffs on $7.5bn-worth of European goods, including European-made Airbus planes, French wine, Scotch and Irish whiskies and cheese from across the continent.
In other news from the White House, Donald Trump lashed out at congressional Democrats for wasting Americans' time with "BULL****" over the new impeachment inquiry filed against him.
Talking to reporters on Wednesday alongside the Finnish President, his frustration with the inquiry boiled over as he accused Democratic leaders of dishonesty and even treason.
Also in focus, Chicago Fed President Charles Evans told Bloomberg on Wednesday that he was concerned about the inflation outlook for the US, stating he would go into the next Federal Open Market Committee meeting asking whether a more accommodative policy was needed despite back-to-back interest rate cuts at the last two meetings.
Evans’ preference was for inflation to run above the monetary authority's 2.0% target for a while in order to balance the long period of undershooting.
On the data front, the number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits rose a little last week, according to figures released by the Department of Labor on Thursday.
Initial jobless claims edged up by 4,000 to 219,000 from the previous week's level, which itself was revised up by 2,000 to 215,000.
Elsewhere, services sector activity in the States cooled more sharply than anticipated last month, amid a rapid decline in new orders and a slower pace of hiring, the results of a key survey showed.
The Institute for Supply Management's non-manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index fell from a reading of 56.4 for August to 52.6 in September, falling short of economists' forecasts for a print of 55.0.
Lastly, factory orders slipped in August as business spending on equipment came in much weaker than originally anticipated, according to the Commerce Department.
Commerce said factory orders dipped 0.1% after recording a 1.4% surge in July.
In corporate news, Tesla shares were down 4.15% by the closing bell, after missing Wall Street estimates in its earnings overnight.
PepsiCo stock was up 2.98% after beating estimates.
Bulk retailer Costco Wholesale was down 1.38% in after hours trading, after it released a disappointing set of fourth quarter results following close of play.
Dow Jones - Risers
Pfizer Inc. (PFE) $35.45 2.16%
McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $210.03 1.82%
Visa Inc. (V) $172.87 1.79%
Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $53.84 1.43%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $82.74 1.37%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $50.03 1.30%
Boeing Co. (BA) $372.07 1.28%
Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) $67.98 1.24%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $136.28 1.21%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $47.06 1.07%
Dow Jones - Fallers
JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $112.19 -0.94%
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $128.15 -0.77%
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $215.36 -0.64%
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $131.19 -0.61%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $197.24 -0.51%
Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $141.73 -0.46%
Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $52.60 -0.44%
American Express Co. (AXP) $112.55 -0.27%
3M Co. (MMM) $155.23 -0.27%
Dowdupont Inc. (DWDP) $30.52 0.00%
S&P 500 - Risers
Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (LW) $77.88 6.18%
Nektar Therapeutics (NKTR) $18.20 5.02%
Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $181.31 4.78%
Hess Corp. (HES) $61.82 4.16%
Edwards Lifesciences Corp. (EW) $223.00 3.54%
Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $43.46 3.53%
Activision Blizzard Inc. (ATVI) $54.07 3.48%
Diamondback Energy Inc. (FANG) $85.89 3.33%
Marathon Oil Corp. (MRO) $11.66 3.19%
Cabot Oil & Gas Corp. (COG) $17.67 3.15%
S&P 500 - Fallers
Constellation Brands Inc. Class A (STZ) $194.26 -6.06%
Charles Schwab Corp. (SCHW) $35.10 -3.86%
Delta Airlines Inc. (DAL) $52.83 -2.80%
Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance Inc. (ULTA) $257.43 -2.04%
Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd (NCLH) $48.14 -2.04%
Robert Half International Inc. (RHI) $52.76 -1.99%
Advance Auto Parts (AAP) $159.87 -1.90%
Kroger Co. (KR) $24.59 -1.84%
Perrigo Company plc (PRGO) $53.19 -1.79%
Quest Diagnostics (DGX) $103.49 -1.78%
Nasdaq 100 - Risers
Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $181.31 4.78%
Workday, Inc. (WDAY) $172.09 3.79%
Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $43.46 3.53%
Activision Blizzard Inc. (ATVI) $54.07 3.48%
Illumina Inc. (ILMN) $297.00 3.02%
Ctrip.Com International Ltd. Ads (CTRP) $30.80 2.87%
Align Technology Inc. (ALGN) $184.77 2.79%
Facebook Inc. (FB) $179.38 2.74%
JD.com, Inc. (JD) $28.80 2.64%
Mercadolibre Inc. (MELI) $558.19 2.59%
Nasdaq 100 - Fallers
Tesla Inc (TSLA) $233.03 -4.15%
Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance Inc. (ULTA) $257.43 -2.04%
Wynn Resorts Ltd. (WYNN) $109.86 -1.20%
Marriott International - Class A (MAR) $119.02 -1.09%
Paychex Inc. (PAYX) $82.56 -0.95%
O'Reilly Automotive Inc. (ORLY) $387.35 -0.79%
Cerner Corp. (CERN) $66.14 -0.60%
eBay Inc. (EBAY) $37.95 -0.58%
Ross Stores Inc. (ROST) $106.93 -0.56%
Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $52.60 -0.44%