Stocks crumble amid mixed earnings, rate cut worries

On Wednesday, US stocks struggled to recover as investors’ concerns about interest rates aligned with a new batch of corporate earnings.

After all three major indexes start the day in the green, the S&P 500, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) were down about 0.1%. Meanwhile, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) slipped roughly 0.3%.

Stocks have struggled to reprise their early-year rally, buffeted most recently by worries over heightened tensions in the Middle East and uncertainty over the timing and depth of rate cuts.

Another spike occurred on Tuesday when investors adjusted their bets on a September cut to December in response to Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s pessimistic remarks about inflation.

A return to strength on Wall Street was indicated by strong major bank results, and now investors are turning to earnings season to push equities higher. After a revenue beat late on Tuesday, shares of United Airlines (UAL) increased by 12%.

However, ASML (ASML) shares dropped 6% in New York following the quarterly report from the Dutch company. Despite US limits, ASML, the world’s largest supplier of equipment to chipmakers, maintained sales to China despite missing order predictions.