Market Slip Deepens as Walmart Weighs on Stocks

U.S. stocks drift lower with Walmart dragging the market as rate cut hopes waver.

Market Slump Deepens as Walmart Weighs on Stocks

U.S. stock indexes edged lower on Thursday, led by Walmart after its profit miss, sending the S&P 500 down 0.4% and leaving the index on track for a fifth straight modest decline. The Dow fell about 137 points and the Nasdaq slipped roughly 0.4%. Nvidia and other leading tech names steadied after recent swings, while bond traders pushed yields higher on renewed doubts about near term rate relief.

Data from S&P Global suggested a pickup in U.S. business activity, but tariffs helped push average selling prices up at the fastest pace in three years. That inflation signal complicates the outlook for monetary policy and has tempered expectations for immediate rate cuts. Traders still price in a strong chance of a pullback at the next Fed meeting, yet the path remains uncertain as investors await Powell’s remarks in Jackson Hole.

Market sentiment is showing that earnings misses can quicken the pace of price moves even when the broader economy looks resilient. Walmart’s setback highlights consumer spending as a potential choke point for a market that has grown reliant on AI driven optimism for higher profits. The pricing power implied by tariffs adds a stubborn inflation thread that policy makers cannot easily ignore.

In this tug of war between growth optimism and policy risk, the Jackson Hole gathering becomes a focal point. If Powell signals caution on rate relief, markets may reassess how quickly risk assets should be priced for the remainder of the year. The episode underscores a broader theme: policy credibility matters more than ever when earnings and inflation data diverge.

Highlights

Policy signals will keep driving price moves in the weeks ahead.