US stocks mixed after strong GDP figures

Aaron Motsoaledi
Avbob Investment Plan
NEW YORK – US stocks finished mixed on Thursday as traders contended with corporate earnings and economic data that came in far stronger than expected.
The world’s biggest economy surprised analysts by growing at an annualized rate of 2.8 percent in the second quarter of the year — double the level seen between January and March, and well above economists’ estimates.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up 0.2 percent at 39,935.07, while the broad-based S&P 500 fell 0.5 percent to close at 5,399.22.
The tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index also finished the day in the red, declining by 0.9 percent to 17,181.72.
“We had a strong economic report, so that helped boost investors’ enthusiasm,” Cresset Capital’s Jack Ablin told AFP. “But we also had some a mixed picture on the micro front.”
“We had some disappointments out of Ford, American Airlines, so I think that it’s creating perhaps a little tension in the market today,” he added.
Among individual stocks, US auto giant Ford fell by 18.4 percent after missing earnings expectations, leading a sell-off in the sector that left General Motors and Stellantis down 5.1 percent and 7.7 percent, respectively.
There was some cause for optimism as well on Thursday, with health care services provider Molina and digital workflow firm ServiceNow both finishing the day up, by 12.3 percent and 13.4 percent, respectively.
Investors’ attention is also firmly fixed on Friday’s inflation data, which is sure to be closely scrutinized ahead of next week’s Federal Reserve interest rate decision.