Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Grim News From Walmart Sends US Markets Tumbling
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 3 years ago on
July 26, 2022

Share

 

Stocks are being dragged lower early Tuesday after a warning from corporate giant Walmart that inflation was negatively impacting American consumers’ spending power.

The S&P 500 index was down 0.9% as of 11:15 a.m. Eastern. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.4% and the Nasdaq Composite was down noticeably more, falling 1.4%.

Walmart shares dropped nearly 9% after the retail giant cut its profit outlook for the second quarter and the full year, saying rising prices for food and gas are forcing shoppers to cut back on discretionary items, particularly clothing, that carry higher profit margins.

Walmart’s profit warning in the middle of the quarter is rare, and raised worries about how the highest inflation in 40 years is affecting the entire retail sector. The stocks of other major chains, including Target, Macy’s and Kohl’s, fell following Walmart’s announcement.

Investors have remained deeply concerned about the negative impacts of inflation on company profits and how it will impact the U.S. consumer. While Americans’ balance sheets are relatively strong from the savings they built up during the pandemic, those savings are being spent on high gas and food prices.

Shares of automaker General Motors were down roughly 2% after the company said its second-quarter profit fell 40% from a year ago, as computer chip and parts shortages hobbled factory output and drove the company’s U.S. sales down more than 15%.

The Detroit automaker earned $1.67 billion from April through June, well below the $2.79 billion it made a year earlier. GM couldn’t deliver 95,000 vehicles during the quarter because it lacked parts.

Investors are also looking to the Federal Reserve, which is is expected to announce a rate hike of up to three-quarters of a percentage point on Wednesday, triple the usual margin. The central bank is waging an aggressive campaign to stem four-decade high inflation. The expected hike would put the Fed’s benchmark rate in a range of 2.25% to 2.5%, the highest since 2018.

Tech heavyweights Apple, Meta, Microsoft and Amazon are due to report their results later this week.

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

Judge Says Fresno Can Change Street Names: Cesar Chavez Blvd Lawsuit Tossed

DON'T MISS

The Aga Khan, Spiritual Leader of Ismaili Muslims and a Philanthropist, Dies at 88

DON'T MISS

Trump Wants US to Take Ownership of Gaza and Redevelop It After Palestinians Are Resettled

DON'T MISS

Fresno High-Speed Chase Ends in Arrests After Crash, Standoff

DON'T MISS

NFL Commish Calls Chiefs Conspiracy Theory ‘Ridiculous’ but Terrell Owens Floats One

DON'T MISS

Where Will Californians Rally During Nationwide Protest Against Trump Administration?

DON'T MISS

Estee Lauder to Cut up to 7,000 Jobs as Sales Slide

DON'T MISS

Visalia Police Arrest Three, Seize Ghost Gun and Drugs

DON'T MISS

Mexico Deploys 10,000 National Guard Members to US Border: What to Know

DON'T MISS

Trump Says the ‘Gaza Thing Has Never Worked’

UP NEXT

Estee Lauder to Cut up to 7,000 Jobs as Sales Slide

UP NEXT

US Job Openings Fall to 7.6 Million in December, Suggesting Job Market Is Slowing but Healthy

UP NEXT

Stock Market Today: Calm Returns to Wall Street, Tech Stocks Lead US Indexes Higher

UP NEXT

Credit Card Giants Drain Billions: Can Congress Take Action?

UP NEXT

Fresno EOC Energy Assistance Staffers Get Layoff Notices

UP NEXT

Protests in All 50 States Against Trump’s Administration on Wednesday

UP NEXT

Elon Musk’s DOGE Gains Access to Social Security, Medicare Payments

UP NEXT

Costco, Teamsters Reach Tentative Contract Agreement, Avoiding a Strike

UP NEXT

Trump’s New Tariffs Threaten Global Trade, Price Stability

UP NEXT

Trump Fires Director of Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

Fresno High-Speed Chase Ends in Arrests After Crash, Standoff

12 hours ago

NFL Commish Calls Chiefs Conspiracy Theory ‘Ridiculous’ but Terrell Owens Floats One

12 hours ago

Where Will Californians Rally During Nationwide Protest Against Trump Administration?

12 hours ago

Estee Lauder to Cut up to 7,000 Jobs as Sales Slide

12 hours ago

Visalia Police Arrest Three, Seize Ghost Gun and Drugs

13 hours ago

Mexico Deploys 10,000 National Guard Members to US Border: What to Know

13 hours ago

Trump Says the ‘Gaza Thing Has Never Worked’

14 hours ago

First Military Flight Departs to Send Migrants to Guantanamo Bay

14 hours ago

A Tale of Two Local Districts: Implementing the CA Classroom Cell Phone Ban

15 hours ago

Hawaii Volcano Produces Tall Lava Fountaining in Latest Episode of Kilauea Eruption

15 hours ago

Judge Says Fresno Can Change Street Names: Cesar Chavez Blvd Lawsuit Tossed

Shortly after renaming eight miles of streets in south Fresno to honor labor organizer Cesar Chavez, a group of business owners and resident...

10 hours ago

10 hours ago

Judge Says Fresno Can Change Street Names: Cesar Chavez Blvd Lawsuit Tossed

The Aga Khan, spiritual head of Ismaili Muslims, listens to a speech during the inauguration of the restored 16th century Humayun's Tomb in New Delhi, India, Sept. 18, 2013. (AP File)
11 hours ago

The Aga Khan, Spiritual Leader of Ismaili Muslims and a Philanthropist, Dies at 88

11 hours ago

Trump Wants US to Take Ownership of Gaza and Redevelop It After Palestinians Are Resettled

A hit-and-run response in Fresno led to a high-speed chase, crash, and standoff, ending in two arrests after police intervention. (CHP)
12 hours ago

Fresno High-Speed Chase Ends in Arrests After Crash, Standoff

12 hours ago

NFL Commish Calls Chiefs Conspiracy Theory ‘Ridiculous’ but Terrell Owens Floats One

The 50501 Movement, a grassroots protest effort organizing demonstrations in all 50 states on February 5 to oppose fascism, emphasizes peaceful action and local participation, with planned protests at key sites, including California’s state Capitol. (GV Wire Composite)
12 hours ago

Where Will Californians Rally During Nationwide Protest Against Trump Administration?

12 hours ago

Estee Lauder to Cut up to 7,000 Jobs as Sales Slide

Three people were arrested on Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2025, in Visalia after police found a ghost gun, high-capacity magazines, and drugs during a search warrant. (Visalia PD)
13 hours ago

Visalia Police Arrest Three, Seize Ghost Gun and Drugs

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend