Ford Motor Company reported weaker-than-expected profit in the second quarter and declared that the U.S. auto industry’s long recovery was at an end, sending its stock and those of other auto companies tumbling.
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Apple, the largest company by market capitalization, reported its first decline in sales in 13 years in its April earnings release, and investors are hoping to see a rebound.
In contrast, Apple shares rose 6.5 percent to $103 after the company sold more iPhones than expected in the third-quarter and gave an upbeat current-quarter forecast.
At 9:42 a.m. ET the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 67.11 points, or 0.36 percent, at 18,405.06.
The S&P 500 was down 5.28 points, or 0.24 percent, at 2,163.2.
The index has rallied 8.4 percent in that time after a 5.3 percent rout in the two days following the U.K.’s shock decision to secede from the European Union.
In corporate news, Apple shares were up almost 6% in pre-market trade.
The firm has faced headwinds in the United States and internationally as more consumers move away from sugary drinks.
The Nasdaq is up 132.40 points, or 2.6 percent. The social media company reported another loss and user adoption rates continue to slow. “Fundamentally, is this going to work?”
Wall Street ended lower on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged but opened the door to a possible rate increase later this year.
While the central bank is expected to keep rates steady for now, the recent set of strong economic data could strengthen the case for an increase earlier than the market anticipates.
USA stocks fell on Tuesday after weak results from a number of companies, including McDonald’s and Gilead, dented investor sentiment.
Global stocks got a boost after Japan Prime Minister Shinzo Abe unveiled a $265 billion stimulus package to reflate the country’s economy. Exxon and Chevron dropped more than 1 percent.
Shares of General Motors Co (NYSE:GM) came off 3.4% to $30.94 as its market value fell about $1.7bln.
In other energy commodities, heating oil fell 3 cents to $1.30 a gallon, wholesale gasoline futures fell 2 cents to $1.32 a gallon and natural gas fell 4 cents to $2.67 per 1,000 cubic feet.
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Coca-Cola, another component of the Dow, fell 1.48 dollars (£1.12), or 3.3%, to 43.40 dollars (£32.90) after the beverage giant trimmed its sales outlook for the year, citing weak demand in China and other worldwide markets.
