Global shares traded at their highest in over two years on Wednesday, supported by relatively robust earnings and a retreat in the dollar, although trouble among U.S. regional banks and scepticism over China’s efforts to support its markets made for cautious trading.
Yum Brands missed Wall Street estimates for quarterly sales on Wednesday, with weaker growth for all three of its top chains, as fewer customers ordered at Taco Bell, KFC and Pizza Hut amid a choppy spending environment in the United States.
China’s Ant Group made net profit of 24.5 million yuan ($3.41 million) in the three months to Sept. 31, down 92% from a year earlier, according to Reuters calculations from Alibaba Group Holding’s earnings report released on Thursday.
New York Times Co missed expectations for quarterly revenue on Wednesday, hurt by a slowdown in advertising sales, sending the company’s shares down more than 4% before the bell.
Uber Technologies forecast quarterly core profit and gross bookings above estimates and reported market-beating results for the holiday quarter on Wednesday, fueled by higher demand in its ride sharing and food delivery businesses.
China’s Alibaba Group Holding on Wednesday missed analysts’ estimates for third-quarter revenue, hurt by softness in the retail market and sagging economic recovery in the world’s second-largest economy.
CVS Health lowered its adjusted profit forecast for 2024 on Wednesday after an increase in medical care among older adults in the United States drove up fourth-quarter costs at its insurance business.
Ford Motor shares surged 6% in premarket trading on Wednesday after the automaker increased its dividend for the first quarter and decided to scale back investments in new capacity for loss-making electric vehicles (EV).
U.S. stock index futures were subdued on Wednesday, with investors taking stock of major corporate earnings from the likes of Ford and Snap while continuing to look out for more clues from policymakers on the outlook for interest-rate cuts.
