Dow falls 1.3% to break streak of records
Wall Street stocks tumbled on Wednesday, halting a weeks-long rally as markets weighed disappointing FedEx results against better-than-expected consumer confidence data. Shares of FedEx sank around 12 percent as the transport company lowered its fiscal 2024 sales forecast, suggesting weakening demand. That was countered by a Conference Board survey showing an unexpected surge in consumer confidence in December. The Dow Jones snapped a five-day streak of record closes to finish at 37,082, down 1.3 percent or around 475 points. The S&P 500 dropped 1.5 percent to 4,698, while the Nasdaq shed 1.5 percent as well to 14,777. US stocks have driven higher since late October, following a nearly unbroken path as inflation moderated and the Federal Reserve signalled plans for 2024 interest rate cuts. "Today's pullback should be viewed as just a pause from what I would say was an extended price action," said Angelo Kourkafas of Edward Jones. "This is a breather in the markets. With eight weeks of gains, we're getting a little extended," he said. Among individual companies, General Mills shares dropped 3.6 percent as the food giant warned of a "slower volume recovery" in fiscal 2024, "reflecting a more cautious consumer economic outlook." (AFP)