US Markets
Update: Equity Markets Mixed Intraday Ahead of Micron Results; Oil Sinks
(Updates with latest market prices and developments.)US benchmark equity indexes were mixed intraday as markets awaited Micron Technology's (MU) latest quarterly results, while oil prices tumbled as tankers continued to move through the Strait of Hormuz.The Nasdaq Composite was down 0.4% at 25,479.2 after midday Wednesday, while the S&P 500 fell 0.2% to 7,347.6. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2% to 51,767.7. Among sectors, energy saw the biggest drop, while consumer discretionary paced the gainers.Ahead of its results -- due after the closing bell Wednesday -- Micron shares were down 2.6%, following a 13% slump in the previous session amid a sell-off in chip-related stocks.Trip.com (TCOM), Jefferies Financial (JEF) and H. B. Fuller (FUL) are also scheduled to report after the markets close.KB Home (KBH) shares surged 17% after the homebuilder released its results. Builders FirstSource (BLDR) shares jumped 10%, the top gainer on the S&P 500.Paychex (PAYX) issued a fiscal 2027 outlook that implies slower growth in both profit and revenue. The human resources software provider's shares were down 1.5% intraday.West Texas Intermediate crude oil was down 4.2% at $70.17 a barrel, while Brent dropped 4.3% to $73.75, both off session lows.The price declines came as tankers continued to move through the crucial Strait of Hormuz after being trapped in the Persian Gulf due to the US-Israel war with Iran that started at the end of February.Three stranded tankers carrying about 5 million barrels of crude oil were exiting the narrow waterway Wednesday, with two heading to Asia, Reuters reported, citing shipping data."With shipping traffic steadily improving through the Strait of Hormuz, traders are increasingly focused on a growing queue of cargoes waiting to move," Saxo Bank said in a report.US President Donald Trump, in a social media post, criticized oil companies for "not dropping their prices at the pump commensurate with the sharply lower prices they are paying for oil." Trump said he had instructed the Department of Justice "to immediately start looking into this."Last week, the US and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding to end the war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial chokepoint for crude flows that connects the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea.US Secretary of State Marco Rubio is in the Persian Gulf region, seeking to sell the US-Iran deal to the Bahrain, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates, which are expected to be among its biggest skeptics, CNN reported Wednesday.US Treasury yields were lower intraday, with the 10-year rate down 9.8 basis points at 4.40% and the two-year rate falling 5.1 basis points to 4.15%.In economic news, new-home sales in the US unexpectedly declined last month as prices moved higher, government data showed."New home sales were much weaker than expected in May, but we think the pace of sales in May probably marks the bottom of what will be a noisy range over the next few months rather than the start of a more sustained decline," Oxford Economics said in a note. "We expect sales to improve later in the year based on our forecast for mortgage rates to move lower."Gold was down 3.5% to $4,004.30 per troy ounce, while silver slumped 6.9% to $57.78 per ounce.
Dow JonesNasdaq CompositeS&P 500$BLDR$FUL$JEF$KBH$MU$PAYX$TCOM
