Weakening labor market and negative retail sales suppress risk appetite

U.S. stocks weakened intraday, with initial unemployment benefits higher than expected and leading retail earnings eclipsing simultaneously lowering risk appetite. The four major indexes fell across the board, and technology and semiconductors were relatively weak. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was temporarily reported at 44,690.96, down 0.55%; the S & P 500 was temporarily reported at 6,357.83, down 0.59%; the Nasdaq Composite Index was temporarily reported at 21,032.56, down 0.66%; the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index was temporarily reported at 5,582.89, down 0.85%. Investors are concerned about the progress of the Jackson Hole Annual Meeting and the Federal Reserve Board's follow-up policy signals, and intraday sentiment tends to be conservative.

Funds turn to defense while growth stocks are under pressure

On the market, people's livelihood consumer stocks weakened due to financial reports, growth-oriented technologies retreated, and the semiconductor community was under pressure simultaneously. Relatively speaking, a few industrial and real estate investment trusts with their own catalysts performed stronger. Energy is concentrated in individual stocks on the news, and intraday fluctuations intensify. Although the index has buying orders at the low end, it lacks diffusion momentum.

The combination of slowing employment and strong price items interferes with interpretation

The number of people receiving initial unemployment benefits was 235,000 and the number of people receiving renewed unemployment benefits was 1.972 million, both higher than market expectations, indicating that the labor market continues to moderate; the Philadelphia Federal Bank Manufacturing Index fell to minus 0.3, new orders weakened and the price payment sub-item rose to 66.8, reflecting that cost pressures are still high. On the other hand, S&P Global's initial comprehensive PMI in August rose to 55.4, manufacturing hit a multi-year high of 53.3, and the service industry was 55.4. The signal of economic expansion was clear. Existing home sales were 4.01 million households annually, up 2% month-on-month. The data simultaneously shows demand resilience and inflation stickiness, making the market more cautious in interpreting the interest rate path.

The Federal Reserve Annual Meeting becomes the core of short-term narrative

The Fed's Jackson Hole Annual Meeting took place, and the market focused on whether Chairman Powell's latest remarks reiterated his patience with inflation and the risk of slowing growth. The minutes of the previous meeting mentioned that inflation is still the focus of decision-making, and the timing and expected range of interest rate cuts remain different. Affected by data and policy uncertainty, interest rate-sensitive assets have increased volatility, and the rebalancing of stock and bond valuations has continued.

Retail leaders lose profits, drag down blue chips

Walmart(WMT) fell about 4.87% intraday, the weakest performer among Dow Jones components. The company's revenue in the last quarter was better than expected and its full-year outlook was raised, but its profit fell short of market expectations. Moreover, the pressure of rising tariff costs was mentioned, and the market became more conservative about cost transmission and gross profit trends. The retail chain's management of prices and inventories will be the focus of observation in the next stage, which will also affect the interpretation of overall consumer demand.

Consumption and channel chains appear to be downgraded

Coty(COTY, COTY) unexpectedly turned into a loss and was conservative about its prospects. Its stock price was under pressure, reflecting that beauty cosmetics and distributors were becoming cautious in replenishing stocks. Instacart's parent company, Maplebear (CART), was downgraded by brokers on the grounds that increased competition might suppress profit momentum and its share price fell. The news shows that terminal consumption momentum is uneven, and brand bargaining power and channel efficiency will determine fundamental differences.

Industrial and real estate investment trusts benefit themselves and catalyze the trend

Nordson(Nordson, NDSN) reported better-than-expected earnings and outlook and announced a $500 million repurchase plan. The medical and fluid solutions business led growth, and its share price rose approximately 4.32% intraday. Broadstone Net Lease(BNL) received a double boost from Goldman Sachs. The market is optimistic that its development pipeline will make profit growth predictable, and its share price will rise. Hewlett Packard Enterprise(HPE) was upgraded by Morgan Stanley. The legal person pointed out that the company's increased investment in artificial intelligence and computing-related investment has driven product demand and its stock price has risen.

Large-scale technologies generally pull back and only a few resist decline

Most of the seven major U.S. stocks were under pressure during the session. Nvidia(NVDA) fell about 0.63%, Tesla(TSLA) fell about 1.41%, Apple(AAPL) fell about 0.81%, Meta Platforms(Facebook, META) fell about 1.81%, Microsoft(MSFT) fell about 0.08%, Alphabet (GOOGL) bucked the trend slightly rose about 0.20%, and Amazon(Amazon, AMZN) fell about 1.26%. Under the pressure of rising yields and valuation, growth stocks have become more volatile, and funds have tended to find targets with higher fundamental certainty.

Weakening semiconductors and green energy reflects pressure on interest rates and chips

The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index fell 0.85% intraday, and the group generally retreated. Solar energy stocks were affected by profit-taking after interference from interest rates and policy messages. Sunrun(Sunrun, RUN) fell back after a surge this week. First Solar(FSLR) fell about 6.73% intraday, and stocks weakened in the short term.

Enterprise dynamics and content ecology have become the focus of intraday discussions

Boeing(BA) said that negotiations with China on a large order of up to 500 aircraft are still under negotiation, and if there is any progress, it will become an important signal for the prosperity of civil aviation and the supply chain. Apple(Apple, AAPL) has confirmed an increase in the monthly fee for Apple TV+ in the United States to US$12.99, effective immediately for new subscribers. Existing subscribers will be adjusted after the next renewal. The annual fee bundled with Apple One will remain unchanged. Content investment and subscription stickiness have become market attention. In terms of Chinese and overseas concepts, XPeng(XPEV) continued its sentiment driven by improvements in delivery and gross profit, while Bilibili(Bilibili, BILI) weakened intraday despite its outstanding revenue, reflecting that the gains have been reflected first and the profit-making path remains to be seen.

Bond yields rise, US dollar strengthens, Commodities and crypto assets are under pressure

Affected by the expansion of the PMI and a strong price segment, the yield on the 10-year U.S. government bond rose intraday, and the U.S. dollar strengthened against the euro, pound and yen. International oil prices and gold prices futures fell, most mainstream cryptocurrencies also fell, and overall risk assets were biased towards defense. The simultaneous changes in interest rates and exchange rates continue to affect stock market valuations and capital flows.

After the futures trend retreated, the spot continues to be weak, but low-end acceptance can be seen

After the release of employment and manufacturing data, U.S. stock futures fell for a while, and spot prices continued to be weak after the opening. Later, low-end purchases were accepted but the rebound was limited. Short-term observations focus on the continuity of jobless claims data, the leading significance of PMI price components on inflation, the impact of retail inventory and discount strategies on profit margins, and policy signals from the Jackson Hole Annual Meeting. If the ten-year yield rate continues to rise, valuation pressure on growth stocks may continue; if data shows that inflation is slowing, risk appetite is expected to improve.

After-hours earnings reports may affect the continuity of technology sentiment

After hours, software stocks such as Zoom Video Communications(Zoom, ZM), Intuit(Intuit, INTU) and Workday(Workday, WDAY) will see financial results. Law said that the description of the pace of corporate IT and artificial intelligence spending will affect the evaluation of technology stocks and funding rotation. Overall, under the tug of economic resilience and inflationary stickiness, the market maintains a range volatility pattern in the short term, and structural rotation driven by news stocks remains the main theme.