Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., May 16, 2023.
Brendan Mcdermid | Reuters
Here are the most important news items that investors need to start their trading day:
1. Gotta get over the hump
Stocks are headed into Wednesday after a lackluster Tuesday. The Dow fell more than 300 points, dragged down in part by Home Depot, which posted disappointing quarterly results that indicate worrisome signs for the economy. Retail sales for April also came in weaker than economists had anticipated. On Wednesday, investors will chew over the latest debt ceiling developments out of Washington and Target’s earnings report (more on both below). Follow live market updates.
2. On the mark
Shopping carts outside a Target store in the Queens borough of New York, US, on Saturday, May 13, 2023. Target Corp. is scheduled to release earnings figures on May 17.
Bing Guan | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Target results came in a little better than expected Wednesday morning, even as shoppers pare back their spending on discretionary items and buy more essentials like groceries. “The consistent inflation, the running out of savings as well as just economic uncertainty in general is having an impact on their choices and they’re making tradeoffs,” said the company’s chief growth officer, Christina Hennington. Digital sales fell as foot traffic at stores increased slightly. CEO Brian Cornell said online deliveries tend to be more in the discretionary category, while same-day curbside pickup orders are more focused on daily necessities. Cornell also said the retail giant is on track to lose $500 million this year from theft and overall “shrink,” compared with last year.
3. ‘I’ll say what I want’
Elon Musk might have just made his brand new Twitter CEO’s job even tougher. Days ago, the billionaire Tesla chief hired Linda Yaccarino, who had a successful run as NBC Universal’s ad chief, to run the social media company and help boost its flagging…
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