Stocks fell on Friday as Wall Street headed for a week of big losses and traders absorbed FedEx’s bleak earnings warning about the global economy.
The Dow Jones industrial average was down 306 points, or 1%. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite fell 1.2% and 1.6%, respectively.
Shares of FedEx fell 24% after the shipping giant It withdrew its full-year guidance And he said he would implement cost-cutting measures to combat soft global export volumes as the global economy “deteriorated significantly”.
Transportation stocks are generally seen as a leading economic indicator, and FedEx pointed to weakness in Asia as one of the main reasons for its negative outlook. Shares of shipping rivals UPS and XPO Logistics fell 4% and 7%, respectively, and Amazon fell 3%.
FedEx’s announcement came after a warmer-than-expected inflation report in the U.S. on Tuesday, which raised concerns that the Federal Reserve could cause a slowdown to cool prices. That data triggered a decline of more than 1,200 points for the Dow.
“There’s a lot of anxiety about how the global economy might affect the U.S. economy right now, while the U.S. economy is dealing with its own very serious problems. I think people are waking up to change,” said Callie Cox. , US investment analyst at eToro.
The three major averages were on pace for a fourth losing week in five as a comeback rally looks like a bear market bounce. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 4.7% this week, while the S&P 500 is down 3.8%. The Nasdaq Composite fell 6.2%, heading for its worst weekly loss since June.
