On Thursday, August 22nd, U.S. stocks closed lower as traders digested fresh economic data and anticipated possible interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve. Major indexes, including the Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq, fell, with technology stocks leading the decline. Increasing unemployment claims and slowing business activity further fueled expectations of an economic slowdown.

According to the economic data, U.S. jobless claims rose by 4,000 to 232,000 in the week ending August 17th, slightly above expectations. The S&P Global manufacturing PMI fell to 48 in August from 49.6, while the services PMI increased to 55.2 from 55.

Most S&P 500 sectors closed lower, led by losses in consumer discretionary, information technology, and communication services, while financials and real estate stocks ended the day with gains.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.43% and closed at 40,712.78. The S&P 500 ended the day lower by 0.89% at 5,570.64 while the Nasdaq Composite fell 1.67%, finishing the session at 17,619.35.

Asian Markets Today

• On Friday, Japan’s Nikkei 225 closed higher by 0.55% at 38,419.50, led by gains in the Transportation Equipment, Pharmaceutical Industry, and Paper & Pulp sectors.
• Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 declined 0.04%, ending the day at 8,023.90, led by losses in the Utilities, Energy, and Resources sectors.
• India’s Nifty 50 gained 0.05%, closing at 24,823.15, and Nifty 500 closed lower by 0.09% at 23,418.65.
• China’s Shanghai Composite was up 0.20%, ending the session at 2,854.37, and the Shenzhen CSI gained 0.42%, closing at 3,327.19.
• Hong Kong’s Hang Seng ended the session lower by 0.16% at 17,612.10.

Eurozone at 06:15 AM ET

• The European STOXX 50 index gained 0.47%.
• Germany’s DAX rose 0.64%.
• France’s CAC was up 0.61%.
• U.K.’s FTSE 100 traded higher by 0.21%.

Commodities at 06:15 AM ET

• Crude Oil WTI was trading higher by 0.90% at $73.67/bbl, and Brent was up 0.80% at $77.84 bbl.
• Natural Gas fell 1.12% to $2.030.
• Gold was trading higher by 0.63% at $2,532.60, Silver gained 1.27% to $29.415, and Copper rose 0.66% to $4.1750. Gold hit a new high of $2,550.

US Futures at 06:15 AM ET

Dow futures were up 0.31%, S&P 500 futures gained 0.48%, and Nasdaq 100 Futures rose 0.76%.

Forex at 06:15 AM ET

• The U.S. dollar index declined 0.09% to 101.41, the USD/JPY was down 0.08% to 146.14, and the USD/AUD fell 0.30% to 1.4869.
• The dollar weakened Friday ahead of Fed Chair Powell’s Jackson Hole speech, while the yen rose after BOJ Governor Ueda reaffirmed a hawkish stance.

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