New York Stock Exchange Closes Mixed Amid Tensions Over US-Russia Summit [New York Stock Exchange Briefing]

Korea Economic Daily

Summary

The three major New York stock indexes reportedly closed mixed amid uncertainty ahead of the US-Russia summit.
UnitedHealth drew investor attention, surging 12% on news of a large stake purchase by Berkshire Hathaway.
Weakness in the consumer sentiment index and the semiconductor sector, as well as rising inflation expectations, could pressure future investor sentiment.

Mixed Close for the Three Major Stock Indexes

Dow 0.1%↑…S&P 500 and NASDAQ Fall

Investor attention was focused on the summit between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, as the three major New York stock indexes closed mixed on the 15th (local time).

On this day, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 44,946.12, up 34.86 points (0.08%) from the previous session. The S&P 500 closed at 6,449.80, down 18.74 points (-0.29%), while the tech-heavy NASDAQ Composite closed at 21,622.98, down 87.69 points (-0.40%).

The Dow, comprised of 30 blue-chip stocks, hit a new all-time intraday high at the start of trading, fueled by a sharp rise in UnitedHealth Group, but surrendered most of its gains and failed to close at a new record high. UnitedHealth surged 12% after Berkshire Hathaway, chaired by Warren Buffett, disclosed that it bought 5 million shares in the first half of the year.

Investors are closely watching the outcome of the US-Russia summit taking place at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in northern Anchorage, Alaska. Market participants are hopeful for a truce between Russia and Ukraine, but do not rule out the possibility that tensions may rise again if the talks fail.

Amid uncertainty over the US-Russia summit, deteriorating consumer sentiment in the US has raised concerns about future corporate earnings. The University of Michigan announced that its consumer sentiment index, which reflects consumers' confidence in the US economy, fell to a preliminary 58.6 in August, down 3.1 points from the previous month.

This marks the first drop in the consumer sentiment index from the previous month in four months, since last April. Expectations that the imposition of tariffs could lead to a rebound in inflation again dragged down consumer sentiment. Consumers’ inflation expectations for the year ahead rose from 4.5% to 4.9%.

The semiconductor sector was weak following President Trump's announcement of anticipated semiconductor tariffs. NVIDIA fell 0.9%, Broadcom (-1.57%), AMD (-1.9%), and Micron Technology (-3.53%) also declined. Intel rose 2.9% on reports that the US government is considering acquiring a partial stake.

President Trump, speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One en route to Alaska, said, “A decision on (semiconductor) tariffs will be made sometime next week.”

Reporter Surim Park, Hankyung.com paksr365@hankyung.com