ASX set to slide, Wall Street mixed

The first big batch of summertime profit reports from US companies made waves on Wall Street after topping analysts’ expectations, but many cancelled each other out. That left US stock indexes little changed near their records on Tuesday.

The S&P 500 edged down by less than 0.1 per cent and pulled a bit further from its all-time high set last week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 180 points, or 0.3 per cent, while the Nasdaq composite dipped 0.2 per cent.

The Australian sharemarket is set to retreat, with futures pointing to a fall of 30 points, or 0.3 per cent, at the open. The Australian dollar was trading at US69.85¢.

The modest Wall Street moves masked some big swings happening underneath the market’s surface.

Goldman Sachs, for example, jumped more than 4 per cent at the start of trading after the bank delivered a profit for July through September that blew past analysts’ expectations. But its stock quickly erased all of it and then flipped between gains and losses before finishing with a dip of 0.2 per cent.

The firm benefited in the summer from strong growth for its business that offers loans to clients for trading stocks, among other things, even as chief executive David Solomon said it’s dealing with a “complicated operating environment” created by lots of uncertainty.

Expectations are high for profits across all kinds of US companies. Analysts are forecasting overall growth of nearly 30 per cent for companies in the S&P 500 during the summer from a year earlier, according to FactSet. If they’re correct, it would be the third straight quarter of growth better than 25 per cent.

And companies need to hit those high numbers to justify the record-setting runs for their stock prices despite the many worries on Wall Street about high inflation, increased pressure from the bond market and the war with Iran.

UnitedHealth Group’s stock swung sharply even though it reported stronger profit and revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected. The healthcare company also raised its forecast for profit over the full year of 2026.

After rallying as much as 5.6 per cent shortly after trading began, it erased all of it and finished with a dip of 0.2 per cent.

More firmly in the losing column was Wells Fargo, whose stock dropped 3.1 per cent after the bank reported weaker revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected, even though its profit topped Wall Street’s estimates. CEO Charlie Scharf cited weaker revenue from its venture capital investments, among other things.

But Scharf also gave a potentially encouraging signal about the broader economy and future profits for companies across industries. He said that “our data shows that our consumer and business customers are doing well.” That’s despite uncertainty about the economy and recent surveys showing Americans have become more discouraged about their finances.

At the country’s biggest bank, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon highlighted “elevated asset prices” as one of the potential risks for the economy. He also mentioned high inflation, rising interest rates and “geopolitical conditions.”

“These forces may be manageable, but we remain prepared for a wide range of outcomes,” he said.

JPMorgan Chase’s stock flipped between gains and losses through the day before finishing with a drop of 0.9 per cent. It reported a weaker profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected, but it also gave a forecast for net interest income in the current quarter that topped Wall Street’s estimate.

Outside of earnings reports, some of the sharpest action was for stocks in the computer chip industry.

Worries have been high for a while about whether chip stock prices have shot too high in the frenzy around artificial-intelligence technology, and concerns climbed further following reports that China’s memory chipmaker CXMT is making advances that could challenge industry heavyweights. That includes companies like Micron Technology of Boise, Idaho, and Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix of South Korea.

Micron fell 3.6 per cent and was the single heaviest weight on the S&P 500. South Korea’s Kospi stock index tumbled 5.5 per cent for its worst day in nearly two months.

Bumble, meanwhile, leaped 56.6 per cent after the app company that helps people make relationships said it agreed to a $US1.3 billion ($1.9 billion), all-cash buyout by Ithaca Holdings.

All told, the S&P 500 edged down by 1.79 points to 7,805.45. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 180.45 to 51,670.10, and the Nasdaq composite fell 41.52 to 27,204.38.

In the bond market, Treasury yields eased after oil prices fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury slipped to 5.21 per cent from 5.24 per cent late Friday. Trading in the US bond market was closed Monday for a holiday.

Yields sank following a 0.9 per cent dip for the price of a barrel of Brent crude oil to $US105.69. Oil prices have been yo-yoing because of uncertainty about when the war with Iran will allow the global energy industry to return to normal.