US markets end lower on Thursday

21 Apr 2023 Evaluate

The US markets ended lower on Thursday. The weakness on markets partly reflected a negative reaction to the latest earnings news from several big-name companies. Shares of Tesla (TSLA) plunged by 9.8 percent after the electric vehicle maker reported a steep drop in first quarter earnings amid disappointing profit margins. Telecom giant AT&T (T) also posted a steep loss after reporting first quarter earnings that exceeded street estimates but weaker than expected revenues. Further, weakness also prevailed in the markets as the Philadelphia Federal reserve showed regional manufacturing activity unexpectedly contracted at an accelerated rate in the month of April. The Philly Fed said its diffusion index for current activity slumped to a negative 31.3 in April from a negative 23.2 in March, with a negative reading indicating a contraction. Street had expected the index rise to a negative 19.2.

With the unexpected decrease, the Philly Fed Index dropped to its lowest level since hitting a negative 43.2 in May 2020. The Labor Department also released a report showing first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits rose by slightly more than expected in the week ended April 15th. The report said initial jobless claims crept up to 245,000, an increase of 5,000 from the previous week's revised level of 240,000. Street had expected jobless claims to inch up to 240,000 from the 239,000 originally reported for the previous week. On the sectoral front, tobacco stocks saw substantial weakness on the day, with the NYSE Arca Tobacco Index tumbling by 2.5 percent after ending Wednesday's session at its best closing level in well over a month.

Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 110.39 points or 0.33 percent to 33,786.62, Nasdaq dropped 97.67 points or 0.8 percent to 12,059.56 and S&P 500 was down by 24.73 points or 0.6 percent to 4,129.79.
 

© 2026 The Alchemists Ark Pvt. Ltd. All rights reserved. MoneyWorks4Me ® is a registered trademark of The Alchemists Ark Pvt. Ltd.

×