Wall St moderate on inflation data, Apple drop

September 10 (Reuters) – Major Wall Street indexes were subdued on Friday as signs of higher inflation and lower Apple shares following an unfavorable court ruling outweighed expectations of an easing of American-Chinese tensions.

Data earlier today showed that U.S. producer prices rose sharply in August, leading to the biggest annual gain in nearly 11 years and indicating that high inflation is likely to persist as the pandemic was putting pressure on supply chains. Read more .

“Today’s wholesale price data should be revealing for the Federal Reserve, as inflationary pressures still do not appear to be easing and will likely continue to be felt by consumers in the months to come,” he said. said Charlie Ripley, senior investment strategist. for Allianz Investment Management.

Apple Inc (AAPL.O) fell 2.7% following a US court ruling in the antitrust lawsuit of the creator of “Fortnite” Epic Games that rolled back some of the iPhone maker’s restrictions on how whose developers can collect payments in apps.

Apple stocks were expected to experience their worst one-day drop since May of this year, weighing on the Nasdaq (.IXIC) and the S&P 500 technology sub-index (.SPLRCT), which fell 0.1%.

Sentiment was also touched by comments from Cleveland Federal Reserve Chairman Loretta Mester that she would still like the central bank to start cutting asset purchases this year despite the weak employment report for ‘August. Read more

Investors have been paying close attention to the job market and data hinting at higher inflation recently for indications of a schedule for the Federal Reserve to begin scaling back its massive bond buying program.

The S&P 500 has risen about 19% so far this year on support for accommodative central bank policies and reopening optimism, but concerns about rising coronavirus infections and accelerating l inflation have recently slowed down.

The top three U.S. indices were supported on Friday by news of a phone call between U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping, which was seen as a positive sign that could lead to a thaw in relations between the two. most important trading partners in the world.

At 1:01 p.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) was up 12.24 points, or 0.04%, to 34,891.62, the S&P 500 (.SPX) was up 2.83 points, or 0.06%, at 4,496.11, and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) was up 12.85 points, or 0.08%, to 15,261.11.

Six of the S&P 500’s eleven sub-indices rose, with energy (.SPNY), materials (.SPLRCM) and consumer discretionary stocks (.SPLRCD) rising the most.

U.S.-listed Chinese e-commerce companies Alibaba and JD.com, music streaming company Tencent Music (TME.N) and electric car maker Nio Inc (NIO.N) all gained 0.7% and 1.4%.

Grocer Kroger Co (KR.N) fell 7.1% after saying global supply chain disruptions, freight costs, discounts and waste would affect its profit margins.

Rising issues outnumbered declines by a 1.12-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and by a 1.02-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

The S&P Index recorded 14 new 52-week highs and three new lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 49 new highs and 38 new lows.

Reporting by Shashank Nayar and Shreyashi Sanyal in Bengaluru; Editing by Aditya Soni

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