Modupe Gbadeyanka
By Investors Hub
Ongoing political turmoil in Washington is gradually weighing on the markets amid waning optimism about President Donald Trump’s ability to implement tax reform and deregulation.
The major US index futures are pointing to a lower opening on Wednesday following the mixed performance seen in the previous session.
In the latest headache for the White House, reports claim Trump asked former FBI Director James Comey to quash an investigation of former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn.
The latest developments come on the heels of the uproar over Trump’s firing of Comey as well as claims the president revealed highly classified information to Russian officials.
A lack of major U.S. economic data may keep some traders on the sidelines, although the Energy Information Administration’s weekly report on oil inventories is likely to attract attention.
Stocks showed a lack of direction during trading on Tuesday, resuming the lackluster trend seen in recent sessions. Despite the choppy trading on the day, the tech-heavy Nasdaq reached another new record closing high.
The major averages eventually ended the session mixed. While the Nasdaq climbed 20.20 points or 0.3 percent to 6,169.87, the Dow edged down 2.19 points or less than a tenth of a percent to 20,979.75 and the S&P 500 dipped 1.65 points or 0.1 percent to 2,400.67.
The lackluster performance on the day came following the release of a mixed batch of U.S. economic data along with continued turmoil in Washington.
The Commerce Department released a report this morning showing that housing starts unexpectedly saw further downside in the month of April.
The report said housing starts fell by 2.6 percent to an annual rate of 1.172 million in April after tumbling by 6.6 percent to a revised 1.203 million in March.
Economists had expected housing starts to climb to a rate of 1.260 million from the 1.215 million originally reported for the previous month.
Additionally, the Commerce Department said building permits slid by 2.5 percent to a rate of 1.229 million in April from 1.260 million in March.
Building permits, an indicator of future housing demand, had been expected to inch up to a rate of 1.270 million.
Meanwhile, a separate report from the Federal Reserve showed a much bigger than expected increase in industrial production in April.
The Fed said industrial production jumped by 1.0 percent in April after climbing by a downwardly revised 0.4 percent in March. Production rose for the third consecutive month and saw its largest monthly gain since February of 2014.
Economists had expected production to rise by 0.3 percent compared to the 0.5 percent increase originally reported for the previous month.
Traders also kept an eye on developments in Washington after a report from the Washington Post claimed President Donald Trump revealed highly classified information to Russian officials in a White House meeting last week.
Trump described the details of an Islamic State terrorist threat related to the use of laptop computers on aircraft, current and former U.S. officials told the Post.
Responding to the news in a post on Twitter, Trump said he has “the absolute right” to share details pertaining to terrorism and airline flight safety with Russia.
The news creates another headache for the White House, potentially threatening Trump’s ability to make progress on issues such as tax reform and deregulation.
Most of the major sectors ended the day showing only modest moves, contributing to the lackluster close by the broader markets.
Semiconductor stocks showed a strong move to the upside, however, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index climbing by 1.5 percent. With the gain, the index reached its best closing level in over sixteen years.
Considerable strength also emerged among steel stocks, as reflected by the 1.1 percent advance by the NYSE Arca Steel Index. The index climbed further off the six-month closing low it set last Friday.
Software, biotechnology, and computer hardware stocks also saw some strength on the day, while weakness was visible among natural gas, utilities, and commercial real estate stocks.
