The markets sold off today as news came out of a letter that President Trump sent to North Korea's leader that the face to face meeting would be canceled. The President cited recent hostility in statements as the reason for the cancellation. This sent the Dow 30 lower by 76, the S&P 500 down 5 and the Nasdaq 100 lower by 1.
Oil (USO ) continued it's pullback today, losing 1.60% on more OPEC output comments that may increase supply in the mid-term. Oil has been on a strong rally higher since last summer, and remains in a strong uptrend.
Financials (XLF ) were mostly lower on the day as the President signed the rollback of some of the regulations imposed on banks during the financial crisis. The move aims to ease regulations on the smaller banks, now with under $250 billion in valuation. The financial sector ETF is made up of all companies that are larger than the new limit so investors saw more competition for these banks now that the smaller banks are more free from regulation.
Best Buy (BBY ) was the latest retail stock to hit the headlines as they reported earnings. Shares led the S&P 500 lower today as shares fell 6.65%. The company reported strong sales in stores but their online sales suffered. The online sales numbers slowed by almost 50% compared to the same time last year which investors used to push shares lower. The company also confirmed that they would not raise their full year outlook.
Limited Brands (LB ) shares got a boost today as shares popped 3.41%. The parent company of Victoria Secret enjoyed a bullish move following a beat on earnings as well as net income for the first quarter. The stock has been sliding lower as the company previously lowered their full year outlook as their Pink branded products we're not selling at the level they hoped, causing an oversupply of merchandise.
Williams Sonoma (WSM ) shares shot higher by 5.65%, back to highs as the upscale retailer saw earnings growth of 12%. Investors focused in on comments made by the CEO which said that 54% of total revenues came from e-commerce. Shares are now flirting with breaking out to new highs, up 5% on the year.
