7 minutes ago
Zuckerberg sells meta stocks
Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold more than $400 million worth of Meta shares late last year, capitalizing on the social media stock's stellar performance in 2023. Meta's shares have risen over the past This year more than doubled, recovering from a difficult 2022. The sale was part of a pre-existing trading plan.
—Fred Imbert
An hour ago
Ford increases prices for F-150 lighting
Ford is increasing the price of some of its F-150 Lightning electric pickup trucks. The company now charges at least $54,995 for an entry-level Pro model, up from $49,995. For its Platinum Black, it increased starting prices from $92,995 to $97,995.
Ford shares rose about 1% premarket.
—Fred Imbert
8 hours ago
Caixin China's Services Purchasing Managers' Index grew at its fastest rate since July in December
A private survey showed that service activity in China continued to increase in December and foreign demand for the country's services also increased.
The Caixin China General Services Business Activity Index rose to 52.9 in December from 51.5 in November, rising for the 12th straight month. The survey also showed that the growth rate was the fastest since July.
“Growth momentum across China's services sector continued to recover at the end of 2023,” the survey report said. “Employment saw a slight increase as companies exercised caution in hiring employees. However, the slight increase was enough to absorb new orders, so backlogs remained unchanged.”
A PMI reading above 50 indicates an expansion in activity, while a reading below this level indicates a decline.
—Shreyashi Sanyal
9 hours ago
Business activity in Hong Kong is improving at the fastest rate since April
Business activity in Hong Kong's private sector improved at its fastest pace since April, according to S&P Global.
The city's purchasing managers' index rose to 51.3 in December, up from 50.1 in November.
The S&P Global report noted that new business and production in Hong Kong returned to growth, although external demand conditions remained subdued.
“The improvement in overall sales still supported faster employment growth, while companies also increased inventory levels as cost pressures eased,” the report continued.
—Lim Hui Jie
10 hours ago
Japan Airlines shares plunge over 2% as markets react to the collision
Japan Airlines shares fell as much as 2% on Thursday before recovering slightly as Japanese markets resume trading and react to the Jan. 2 collision of a JAL flight at Tokyo's Haneda airport.
The crash occurred when JAL Flight 516 collided with a Japanese Coast Guard aircraft, killing five of the six crew members on board the Coast Guard aircraft.
In a regulatory filing with the Japanese stock exchange on Thursday, JAL said the estimated damage from the plane collision was 15 billion yen (105 million), which was covered by insurance.
11 hours ago
Australian shares continue their slide, hitting two-week lows
Australian shares continued to slide after hitting a record high earlier this week, falling to a two-week low on Thursday.
The S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.53% to trade near 7,495 – its lowest level since December 19 – pulling back from its all-time high of 7,632.70 hit on Tuesday.
Australian markets fell, tracking a gloomy global mood after minutes from the US Federal Reserve meeting in December showed interest rate cuts were likely in 2024, but provided little clarity on when that might happen.
Bets that the Reserve Bank of Australia will stop raising interest rates have boosted the country's stock market – but those hopes have been partly driven by the Fed's dovish stance.
The Australian dollar was up 0.1% against the U.S. dollar in early trading.
—Shreyashi Sanyal
11 hours ago
ADP's private payroll report for December is scheduled to be released on Thursday
ADP's private payrolls report for December, scheduled to be released Thursday morning, is expected to show that companies added 130,000 new workers last month, according to economists surveyed by Dow Jones. That would be an increase from 103,000 the previous month.
The report will appear at 8:15 a.m. ET.
—Sarah Min
11 hours ago
The first unemployment claims will be announced Thursday morning
According to Dow Jones consensus estimates, initial jobless claims, the number of workers applying for unemployment benefits for the first time, were expected to have risen to 219,000 in the week ending December 30. That would be slightly more than the week before, when initial claims totaled 218,000.
The report is scheduled to be released Thursday at 8:30 a.m. ET.
—Sarah Min
11 hours ago
Stocks make the biggest moves after hours
These companies are making the biggest moves in expanded commerce:
- Cal-Maine Foods – Shares of Cal-Maine Foods fell 6.1%. The fresh egg producer reported second-quarter profit of 35 cents per share, well below profit of $4.07 per share in the year-ago period. Revenue was $523.2 million, down from $801.7 million a year ago. Cal-Maine Foods expects a recent HPAI outbreak at its Kansas operations to impact its overall egg supply until the chicken flock is replenished.
- Resources Connection – Shares of the management consulting firm rose 4.8%. Resources Connection reported second-quarter revenue of $163.1 million, beating analysts polled by FactSet expected $161.9 million. On the other hand, the company's earnings of 14 cents per share were below the consensus estimate of 17 cents per share.
- MongoDB – MongoDB shares fell about 2%. UBS downgraded the stock to “neutral” from “buy” and lowered its price target. According to FactSet, the stock will not maintain the same price as last year. In 2023, MongoDB shares have more than doubled.
—Sarah Min
12 hours ago