US Stocks Edge Lower; Private Employment Tops Views

U.S. stocks traded lower this morning, following the release of ADP jobs data on Wednesday.

Following the market opening Wednesday, the Dow traded down 0.08% to 39,139.63 while the NASDAQ fell 0.27% to 16,197.58. The S&P 500 also fell, dropping, 0.02% to 5,204.61.

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Leading and Lagging Sectors

Health care shares jumped by 0.5% on Wednesday.

In trading on Wednesday, consumer staples shares fell by 0.5%.

Top Headline

Private businesses in the U.S. added 184,000 workers in March compared to a revised 155,000 gain in February, and topping market estimates of 148,000.

Equities Trading UP

Kintara Therapeutics, Inc. KTRA shares shot up 114% to $0.2152 after the company entered a merger agreement with TuHURA Biosciences.

Shares of ARCA biopharma, Inc. ABIO got a boost, surging 90% to $3.2550 after the company and Oruka Therapeutics announced a merger agreement.

VivoPower International PLC VVPR shares were also up, gaining 55% to $9.14 after the company declared a capital management strategy including a stock buyback program of up to $5 million.

Equities Trading DOWN

Casa Systems, Inc. CASA shares dropped 79% to $0.0546 after the Company filed voluntary petitions for relief under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court.

Shares of View, Inc. VIEW were down 63% to $0.41 after the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The company on Tuesday said it reached a real with Cantor Fitzgerald and RXR to become a private company.

Sintx Technologies, Inc. SINT was down, falling 43% to $0.0239 after the company announced pricing of a $1.5 million public offering of common stock.

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Commodities

In commodity news, oil traded up 0.6% to $85.66 while gold traded up 0.5% at $2,294.10.

Silver traded up 2.6% to $26.585 on Wednesday, while copper rose 1.8% to $4.1445.

Euro zone

European shares were mixed today. The eurozone’s STOXX 600 fell 0.1%, London’s FTSE 100 fell 0.3% while Spain’s IBEX 35 Index rose 0.4% The German DAX rose 0.1% French CAC 40 rose 0.1% while Italy’s FTSE MIB Index rose 0.1%.

The consumer price inflation rate in the eurozone eased to 2.4% year-over-year in March, compared to market expectations of 2.6%, while the unemployment rate in the eurozone came in at 6.5% in February, versus market estimates of 6.4%.

Asia Pacific Markets

Asian markets closed lower on Wednesday, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 falling 0.97%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index dipping 1.22%, China’s Shanghai Composite Index falling 0.18% and India’s S&P BSE Sensex falling 0.1%.

Retail sales in Hong Kong climbed 0.5% year-over-year in February following a 1.2% decline in the prior month. The Caixin China General Services PMI rose to 52.7 in March from 52.5 in February, while composite PMI rose to 52.7 in March from 52.5 in the previous two months.

The au Jibun Bank Japan services PMI fell to 54.1 in March from a preliminary level 54.9, while composite PMI fell to 51.7 in March versus a flash reading of 52.3.

Economics

Mortgage applications in the U.S. declined by 0.6% on the week ending March 29, 2024.

Private businesses in the U.S. added 184,000 workers in March compared to a revised 155,000 gain in February, and topping market estimates of 148,000.

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