USA retail sales growth was unexpectedly flat in July as consumers cut back on buying clothes and other goods, while the producer price index fell 0.4 percent in July, the biggest drop in almost a year.
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The three major USA stock indexes hit all-time highs on Monday, building on the record-setting rally of the past few weeks, as oil prices rose.
The lack of interest among executives may be a warning signal for investors who just saw analyst estimates for third-quarter profits turn negative even as equity valuations swell to levels not seen since the aftermath of the dot-com bubble.
USA stock indexes were trading at all-time highs on Monday, building on the record-setting rally of the past few weeks, as oil prices jumped.
For the week, the Dow rose 0.2 per cent, the S&P 500 edged up 0.1 per cent and the Nasdaq gained 0.2 per cent. The Nasdaq composite is down 4 points, or 0.1 percent, to 5,225.
Negative sentiment could also be generated by a report from the Commerce Department showing that US retail sales were unexpectedly flat in the month of July.
Retail sales likely rose 0.4 percent in July after a 0.6 percent increase in June, a report is expected to show.
The S&P 500 was up 9.69 points, or 0.44 percent, at 2,193.74.
Declining issues outnumbered advancing ones on the NYSE by a 1.06-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.07-to-1 ratio favored decliners. Despite the lackluster performance, the tech-heavy Nasdaq ended the session at a new record closing high.
The index is priced at about 17 times forward earnings, compared with a 10-year historical average of 14, according to Thomson Reuters data. Bond yields also continue to stay very low. Economists had expected the index to inch up by 0.1 percent.
“The retail sales number was not robust, giving a little bit more reason to question the direction of the economy again”, said Peter Tuz, president of Chase Investment Counsel in Charlottesville, Virginia.
The S&P 500 fell less than 2 points, or 0.08 percent, to 2,184.
All three indexes closed at record highs on Thursday, the first time they have done so simultaneously since 1999. “The chance of a global coordinated cutback is a bullish factor”.
Oil major Exxon rose 0.3 per cent, while Chevron was up 0.7 per cent.
West Texas Intermediate crude oil, the USA benchmark, rose 1.9% to $45.33 a barrel.
The weak data could also discourage the Federal Reserve from raising interest rates this year. Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index surged up by 1.1 percent, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index advanced by 0.8 percent.
That would put US companies on track for a sixth consecutive period of falling profits, the longest since the financial crisis.
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The benchmark 10-year Treasury US10YT=RR note fell 10/32 in price to yield 1.55 percent.
