U.S. stocks mixed amid strong corporate earnings

Dollar and bonds up, gold down

With companies reporting better-than-expected results, U.S. stocks opened mixed. As the dollar rose along with bonds, gold fell by the largest margin in four years.

The three major indexes, which were trading around the prior day's levels at the open, were at about the same level as the previous day around 10:20 a.m. Eastern Standard Time: the S&P500 was trading near the prior day's level, the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.2%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.3%.

The 10-year Treasury yield fell 3 basis points (1bp=0.01%) to 3.95%.

Gold prices plunged. In London, spot gold fell as much as 3.8% intraday, and in New York spot gold fell 3.7% to $4,193.53 per ounce.

The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.3% that day, and with the election of Sanae Takaichi as Japan's prime minister—who seeks fiscal expansion—the Japanese yen fell 0.7% to 151.82 per dollar.

Bitcoin traded down 2.2% at $108,664.31, and Ether traded down 2.9% at $3,884.18.

General Motors, which reported results that day, raised its annual outlook and posted third-quarter results that beat Wall Street estimates, sending its shares up 13%.

Jet engine maker General Electric posted profits on strong air travel demand and raised its full-year outlook for the second consecutive quarter.

Defense contractors Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman, which reported results that day, raised their annual profit outlooks as third-quarter earnings beat analysts' estimates thanks to participation in the Sentinel missile program. However, shares of both companies fell that day.

Craig Johnson of Piper Sandler said, "In the near term, I expect the stock market to trade sideways or undergo a correction over the coming weeks."

According to FactSet, so far more than three-quarters of S&P 500 companies have reported results that beat expectations. With the artificial intelligence (AI) industry still strong, major tech companies are expected to account for a large share of profits. FactSet expects the Magnificent Seven companies' earnings to have increased 14.9% year over year, while the remaining 493 companies' earnings rose 6.7%.

Anthony Saglimbene, chief market strategist at Ameriprise Financial, said, "If the Magnificent Seven can meet the raised earnings expectations, the market will see another rally."

Kim Jeong-a, contributing reporter kja@hankyung.com