US markets finish lower on Monday

09 Jul 2019 Evaluate

The US markets ended lower for second straight session on Monday amid waning optimism about a near-term interest rate cut following last Friday's much better than expected jobs data.. The Labor Department's closely watched report had showed employment jumped by 224,000 jobs in June compared to expectations for an increase of 160,000 jobs. Though, traders continue to look for the Federal Reserve to cut rates when policy makers meet at the end of the month. Lower interest rates make it cheaper for companies to borrow and are thus bullish for stocks. A notable drop by Apple (AAPL) also weighed on the markets, with the tech giant tumbling by 2.1 percent. Fellow Dow component Boeing (BA) also fell by 1.3 percent after Saudi Arabia's flyadeal became the first airline to officially cancel an order for the beleaguered aerospace giant's 737 MAX aircraft.

However, in light of the focus on the outlook for rates, overall trading activity was somewhat subdued ahead of Fed Chairman Jerome Powell's congressional testimony later this week. Powell is due to testify before the House Financial Services Committee on Wednesday and before the Senate Banking Committee on Thursday. Powell’s testimony comes after a stronger-than-expected jobs report raised questions about whether the Fed will cut rates later this month. Besides, Wednesday will also see the release of the minutes of the Fed's last monetary policy meeting, which may shed additional light on the central bank's decision to make notable changes to its accompanying statement.

Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 115.98 points or 0.43 percent to 26806.14, Nasdaq declined 63.41 points or 0.78 percent to 8098.38 and S&P 500 was down by 14.46 points or 0.48 percent to 2975.95.

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