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Sector Update: Financial Stocks Edge Higher Pre-Bell Thursday

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Financial stocks were edging higher pre-bell Thursday, with the State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLF) advancing by 0.5%.

The Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS) was up 1.8% and its bearish counterpart Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares (FAZ) was 1.7% lower.

Morgan Stanley (MS) stands to benefit from the planned initial public offering of the National Stock Exchange of India, Bloomberg reported. Shares of Morgan Stanley were up 1.1% premarket.

Brookfield Business (BBUC) has agreed to sell its Multiplex Global subsidiary to Obayashi, the Japanese company said. Brookfield Business stock was up more than 2% pre-bell.

HSBC (HSBC) has been ordered by Australia's Federal Court to pay a 35 million Australian dollar ($24.6 million) penalty after admitting to serious failures in protecting customers from scams, Australian Securities and Investments Commission said. HSBC stock was marginally lower premarket.

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Sector Update: Financial Stocks Softer Late Afternoon

Financial stocks fell in late Wednesday afternoon trading with the NYSE Financial Index declining 0.7% and the State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLF) decreasing 0.8%.The Philadelphia Housing Index fell 1.9%, and the State Street Real Estate Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLRE) dropped 2.3%.Bitcoin (BTC-USD) dropped 0.9% to $65,060, and the yield for 10-year US Treasuries rose 3.5 basis points to 4.463%.In economic news, the Federal Reserve kept its benchmark lending rate steady, leaving the easing bias out of its policy statement. The Federal Open Market Committee maintained its federal funds rate target at 3.5% to 3.75%, in line with Wall Street's expectations and marking the fourth straight pause.Separately, US retail sales rose more than expected in May as consumers kept spending despite higher prices. Sales climbed 0.9% after a downwardly revised 0.4% gain in April, the Census Bureau reported Wednesday. The consensus was for a 0.6% increase in May, based on a Bloomberg survey.In corporate news, Ellington Financial (EFC) shares fell 2.2% after BTIG downgraded the stock to neutral from buy.CME (CME) said Terry Duffy will step down as CEO and become executive chairman of the board, effective March 1. He will be succeeded by Lynne Fitzpatrick, 48, the current chief financial officer and president, the company said Wednesday in a regulatory filing. CME shares were down 4%.JPMorgan Chase's (JPM) asset management division is advising investors to hold on to stocks and other higher-risk assets in H2, saying that AI investments should keep the markets rising despite higher inflation and a Federal Reserve that continues to maintain rates, Bloomberg reported. JPMorgan shares were up 0.4%.KKR-backed (KKR) BMC Software agreed to sell a majority stake in BMC Helix to Montagu in a carve-out deal, Montagu said. KKR shares were down 2.1%.

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Sectors

Sector Update: Energy Stocks Fall Late Afternoon

Energy stocks declined late Wednesday afternoon with the NYSE Energy Sector Index falling 1.5% and the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) dropping 1.3%.The Philadelphia Oil Service Sector Index lost 2.9%, and the Dow Jones US Utilities Index shed 1.5%.West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose 0.1% to $76.11 a barrel, and global benchmark Brent eased 0.1% to $78.92 a barrel. Henry Hub natural gas futures fell 2.2% to $3.17 per 1 million BTU.In sector news, the US, Iran and mediators are in talks over holding the signing of the memorandum of understanding remotely as early as Wednesday, instead of in-person on Friday, Axios reported. A diplomat from one of the mediating countries told Axios that discussions to speed up the deal are intended to reopen the Strait of Hormuz sooner, since the parties agreed that the strait's opening and the lifting of the US blockade would only take effect after the formal signing.Separately, US crude oil stocks, including those in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, fell by 17.2 million barrels in the week ended Friday following a decrease of 15.2 million in the previous week. Excluding inventories in the SPR, commercial crude oil stocks fell by 8.3 million after a decline of 7.2 million in the previous week, a larger drop than the 3 million expected in a survey compiled by Bloomberg.The International Energy Agency lowered its global oil demand forecast for 2026 amid war-driven headwinds while projecting a rebound next year. The agency now expects oil consumption to fall by 1.1 million barrels per day this year, 700,000 lower than last month's projection. Q2 deliveries slumped by 5 million a day from a year earlier "in the face of higher fuel prices and disruptions to product availability," the IEA said.In corporate news, Devon Energy (DVN) is drawing fresh activist attention following its merger with Coterra Energy, with Toms Capital Investment Management having built a stake in the shale producer, the Financial Times reported. Devon shares fell 0.8%.Western Midstream Partners (WES) said the second produced-water treatment pilot facility in its joint industry project has begun operations in Reeves County, Texas, in the Permian Basin. The stock declined 0.7%.ConocoPhillips (COP) confirmed it signed a development agreement with Syria's new government after a Financial Times report said the company was poised to become the first major US oil and gas producer to do so. ConocoPhillips shares fell 0.5%.

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Sectors

Sector Update: Consumer Stocks Decline Late Afternoon

Consumer stocks fell late Wednesday afternoon with the State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLP) dropping 2.5% and the State Street Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLY) declining 2.6%.In corporate news, JetBlue Airways (JBLU) will shut down its flight attendant base at Newark Liberty International Airport and tech-operations bases at Newark and New York's LaGuardia Airport in autumn to cuts costs and bolster service in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. JetBlue shares fell 1%.Lululemon Athletica (LULU) apologized after a promotional yoga event held on the Great Wall of China drew criticism on Chinese social media over the alleged use of a Japanese drum during the performance, the Financial Times reported. Lululemon shares fell 2%.CarMax's (KMX) fiscal Q1 earnings fell as comparable used-vehicle sales declined. The shares dropped 9.8%.La-Z-Boy's (LZB) shares jumped 15% after the company reported fiscal Q4 earnings rose and said it expects sales to outperform the industry in the current quarter.

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