US sharemarkets closed lower on Tuesday as the stalemate over fresh economic stimulus continued. The Dow Jones index fell by 157 points or 0.6%. The S&P500 index also lost 0.6% and the Nasdaq index was down 12 points or 0.1%.

There was a rally in some of the world’s largest technology companies. Shares of Amazon.com (+4.8%) surged ahead of its Prime Day shopping event on Tuesday. Apple (+6.4%) is expected to unveil its first 5G iPhone also on Tuesday.

There were continued hopes for a new fiscal stimulus package. Advanced Micro Devices said it was in talks to buy chipmaker Xilinx in a deal valued at more than $30 billion.

The ASX 200 is down 0.11 percent to 6,095.1. This makes it the first decline in five days, with the market still up 5.2 percent this week.

There were hopes for more fiscal stimulus. US President Trump said some discussions were ongoing with Democrats about boosting support for US airlines and providing Americans with $1,200 stimulus checks.

US President Trump encouraged Congress to pass a series of standalone fiscal stimulus bills including support for the airlines. The Dow Jones airlines index rose by 3.5%. Investors digested minutes from the last Federal Reserve meeting. And investors await today’s Vice Presidential debate. The Dow Jones index ended higher by 531 points or 1.9%. The S&P500 index lifted 1.7% and the Nasdaq index gained 210 points or 1.9%.

US sharemarkets fell in afternoon trade after US President Trump stopped talks on a fiscal stimulus package. The Dow Jones index ended lower by 376 points or 1.3%. The S&P500 index lost 1.4% and the Nasdaq index fell by 178 points or 1.6%.

The Australian sharemarket is easing at lunch as it consolidates on yesterday’s outsized gains.

Shares jumped after US President Trump said that he will be discharged from hospital on Monday evening after being treated for COVID-19. The Dow Jones index rose by 465 points or 1.7%. The S&P500 index gained 1.8% and the Nasdaq index climbed 2.3%.

Shares fluctuated as the White House countered House Democrats’ US$2.2 trillion fiscal stimulus package with a US$1.5 trillion-plus proposal, to include a US$20 billion aid extension for airlines.

Investors were encouraged by firm economic data. Also Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said he thought Democrats and Republicans could “reach a reasonable compromise” on a new stimulus bill. Shares in Moderna rose 0.3% after earlier being up 3.1% after it said that its trial COVID-19 vaccine produced encouraging results. The Dow Jones index rose by 329 points or 1.2% after earlier being up by 573 points. The S&P500 index was higher by 0.8% and the Nasdaq index rose by 82 points or 0.7%.

Investors await the first presidential debate. Energy and financials fell the most. Investors also looked to square positions near the end of the quarter.

There were hopes for a new deal on fiscal stimulus and several corporate deals being struck. Devon Energy (+11.3%) said it would buy peer WPX Energy (+16.4%) for US$2.56 billion. Caesars Entertainment (+2%) disclosed a cash offer to buy London-based William Hill for £2.9 billion.

There were signs that US lawmakers were making progress on a reported US$2.4 trillion stimulus package that could be voted on next week.

Homebuilders rose 0.7% after data showed the highest new home sales in 14 years. But waning hopes of more fiscal stimulus weighed on sentiment. Overall, economic data was mixed.

Chairman Jerome Powell reiterated that there is a long way to go for the US economic rebound, which will likely require more support. Vice-Chairman Richard Clarida and regional Fed chiefs also cited the importance of fiscal policy in speeches. Shares of Amazon (-4.1%) and Apple (-4.2%) both dropped.

Shares in Amazon rose 5.7% after a broker upgrade. Major technology stocks also generally rose. Shares in home builders rose near 4-5% after strong data on existing home sales. Real estate and consumer discretionary were amongst the strongest sectors. The Dow Jones index rose by 140 points or 0.5%. The S&P500 index rose by 1.1% and the Nasdaq gained 185 points or 1.7%.

The ASX 200 following further declines on Wall Street overnight. Towards lunch, the ASX 200 is sliding for a fourth consecutive session, down 52 points or 0.9% to 5,770.

Concerns about fresh lockdowns in Europe raised fears about an elongated recovery for the global economy. Shares in industrials fell 3.4% while technology rose 0.8%. Stay-at-home stocks like Apple (up 3%), Microsoft (up 1.1%) and Amazon (up 0.2%) provided some support for the broader S&P 500 and the Nasdaq. Congress remained deadlocked on a fresh stimulus package. Healthcare providers fell on uncertainty over the fate of the Affordable Care Act, better known as Obamacare. After being down 942 points at session lows, the Dow Jones index fell by 510 points or 1.8%. The S&P500 index lost 1.2% and the Nasdaq fell by 15 points or 0.1%.

Shares in Apple fell 3.2%, Alphabet (Google) lost 2.4%, Amazon lost 1.8% and Microsoft fell 1.2%. The Dow Jones index fell by 245 points or 0.9%. The S&P500 index lost 1.1% and the Nasdaq fell by 117 points or 1.1%. Over the week, the Dow fell 0.03%; S&P 500 fell 0.6%, and the Nasdaq lost 0.6%.

Mega cap tech shares of Amazon.com (-2.3%), Apple (-1.6%) and Microsoft (-1%) all weighed on major indexes. Shares of cloud company Snowflake were down by 10.4% a day after its market debut.

Retail sales lifted at a slower rate than forecast. And investors concluded that the Federal Reserve would leave rates low for an extended period. Shares in FedEx rose 5.8% after latest earnings beat market forecasts. The Dow Jones index rose by 37 points or 0.1%. The S&P500 index fell by 0.5% and the Nasdaq index fell by 140 points or 1.3%.

Technology shares lifted with Tesla shares up 7.2%, rising for the fifth day, as anticipation heats up for its “Battery Day” event next week. Netflix shares rose 4.1% and Facebook shares gained 2.4%. Apple shares rose 0.2% following its rollout of a new virtual fitness service and a bundle of all its subscriptions, Apple One. But Citigroup (-6.9%) shares fell on risk management regulatory concerns.

In vaccine news, AstraZeneca resumed its British clinical trials of its COVID-19 vaccine. And shares in Pfizer Inc gained 2.6% after the drugmaker and German biotech firm BioNTech SE proposed to expand their Phase 3 pivotal COVID-19 vaccine trial to about 44,000 participants.

Shares in cloud services provider Oracle fell 0.6% despite earnings beating expectations. The Dow Jones index rose by 131 points or 0.5% assisted by gains of 1.3% for Home Depot with shares in Caterpillar up 2.65%.

A fresh sell-off in heavyweight technology shares sent stocks to a fourth loss in five days. Shares of Apple (-3.3%), Microsoft (-2.8%) and Amazon.com (-2.9%) dropped as investors continued to fret about stretched valuations.

Shares in Apple rose 4.0% with Tesla up 10.9%. Shares in ‘stay-at-home’ stocks like Facebook and Amazon also rose. Reuters reported that shares in “Tiffany & Co tumbled 6.4% after French luxury goods giant LVMH warned it was set to walk away from its planned $16 billion takeover of the US jeweller.” The Dow Jones index rose by 440 points or 1.6%. The S&P500 index lifted 2.0% and the Nasdaq index gained 294 points or 2.7%.

Technology shares extended their slide. Tesla shares lost 21.1% after being snubbed for inclusion in the S&P 500 index. Apple shares fell 6.7%, despite announcing an event on September 15 where it is expected to reveal new products.

So-called ‘defensive’ areas of the market did well including utilities, consumer staples, and real estate. The Dow Jones index rose by 455 points or 1.6%. The S&P500 index lifted by 1.5% and the Nasdaq index rose by 117 points or 1.0% – both closing at record highs.

Solid factory data fuelled optimism about the US economic recovery. Apple shares rose 4% on reports of orders for 75 million 5G iPhones later this year. Shares of Zoom Video surged 40.8% after it raised its annual revenue forecast by over 30%.

Some investors booked profits at the end of the month. Shares in Tesla rose 12.6% and shares in Apple rose 3.4% after both companies effected stock splits.

US sharemarkets rose on Friday with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq at record highs.

The Dow Jones index rose 160 points or 0.6%. The S&P500 index lifted 0.2% to a record closing high. But the Nasdaq index lost 39 points or 0.3%.

Technology led the way. Shares in Netflix rose 11.6% on a survey showing that subscription numbers will remain firm after stay-at-home advices are eased. Salesforce.com, the cloud computing company and soon-to-be Dow component, gave the S&P its biggest boost, its shares gaining 26% following its earnings report. The Dow Jones index rose by 83 points or 0.3%. The S&P500 index lifted 1.0% to record highs and the Nasdaq index gained 199 points or 1.7% to a record high.

The S&P500 and Nasdaq indexes hit fresh all-time highs. US and China officials reaffirmed their commitment to the ‘Phase One’ trade deal. Moderna said it’s near a deal to supply 80 million vaccine doses to the EU. Shares of Facebook (+3.5%) hit record highs after unveiling a series of tools designed to expand shopping on its platform. But Apple shares retreated 0.8% ahead of its 4-to-1 stock split. Shares of electronics retailer Best Buy fell 4% after warning of a slowdown in sales in the third quarter. The Dow Jones index fell by 60 points or 0.2%. But the S&P500 index lifted 0.4% and the Nasdaq index gained 86 points or 0.8% -both record closes.

US sharemarkets lifted on Monday in response to news on advances in the war against the coronavirus. But dampening sentiment was the stalled talks by US Congress on a fresh aid package for the jobless.

Both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq are at record highs. Economic data encouraged investors. A 5.15% lift in shares in Apple drove markets higher. The Dow Jones index rose by 191 points or 0.7%. The S&P500 index lifted 0.3% to record highs.

Shares fell early in the trading session on disappointing US economic data. But a rally in tech giants Apple (+2.2%), Tesla (+6.6%), Microsoft (+2.3%) and Amazon (+1.1%) boosted indexes.

Shares in Target rose 12.7% on record sales figures. Shares in Apple rose 0.1% and during the session the company was the first to pass US$2 trillion in market capitalisation. The Dow Jones index fell by 85 points or 0.3%. The S&P500 index fell 0.4%. And the Nasdaq index fell by 64 points or 0.6%.

The S&P500 and Nasdaq indexes both closed at record highs as technology shares rallied and US housing data added to investor optimism. Shares of Amazon (+4.1%) and Tesla (+2.8%) both jumped.