Small businesses are seeing growth despite tariffs and AI
Small businesses report seeing growth and employment workers. Large companies are raising prices and firing workers due to tariff concerns.
Fox-5 Atlanta
US stocks flew after the opening bell as investors are increasingly betting on interest rate cuts in the coming weeks.
The Dow Jones industrial average opened near 44,650 with 191 points or 0.4%, while the Broad S&P 500 index was tacked at 25 points or 0.4%, starting nearly 6,471 sessions. Nasdaq Composite rose 109 points or 0.5% at nearly 21,791.
After the tamed inflation report in July, expectations for interest rate cuts at the Federal Reserve policy meeting in September rose sharply. The CME FedWatch tool, which tracks market expectations for rate movements at each Fed meeting, suggests there is more than 94% chance that the Fed will be reduced. This is about 85% more likely than consumer inflation data.
Benchmark 10 years The US Treasury lost about 4 basis points in trade of nearly 4.25% in the morning.
Is a quarter-point rate reduction sufficient?
If the Fed decides to lower fees in September, policymakers should consider cutting half points, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent proposed in a business interview with FOX.
The CME FedWatch tool shows that the market expects only a 0.25% cut.
Two days after the Fed did not change to July 30, revised data showed that employment growth in May and June was weaker than official figures previously stated. If the Fed received revised data prior to the meeting, Bessent said it could have reduced the fees rather than retaining them without changing them.
The Fed “may have been cut in June or July,” Bescent said.
Separately, Bescent said he was “full of hope.” Stephen Milan said it will be approved by the Senate to fill the seat of former Federal Reserve Governor Adriana Kugler by the September meeting. Coogler resigned on Friday, and Milan finished her term.
Corporate News
- Cava missed its second quarter revenue growth estimate and lowered its same store sales forecast for the full year. The restaurant chain’s shares slid 22% after the opening bell.
- CoreWeave has surpassed its second-quarter sales expectations, increasing its third-year and full-year revenue outlook over its view. Adjusted net losses have grown significantly over the past year, missing analysts’ expectations. Stock prices fell by more than 11% a day before the IPO lockup expired.
- Stablecoin Issuer Circle said it plans to sell 10 million Class A shares to the public, of which 2 million will be provided by the company and others from shareholders. Cryptocurrency has been rising sharply in recent weeks. Ethereum has grown nearly 60% over the past month, while Solana has grown 25%. Meanwhile, Cryptocurrency Exchange Bullish made its stock market debut on Wednesday with Ticker BLSH.
- Blinker International, the parent company of Chile and Maggino, posted quarterly results that beat analysts’ expectations. Stocks were up 2% Wednesday morning.
- Tencent Holdings shares rose almost 5% after the company announced its earnings beat.
Medora Lee is a money, market and personal finance reporter for USA Today. You can contact her at mjlee@usatoday.com and subscribe to our free daily money newsletter for personal finance tips and business news every Monday to Friday morning.
