April 6, 2018: Markets opened lower Friday following a weak report on non-farm payrolls which hit already soft futures that were staggering from Trump’s proposal for even more tariffs on Chinese imports. As the day wore on equities prices eroded steadily.
WTI crude oil for May delivery settled at $62.06 a barrel, down 2.3% for the day and down 4.6% for the week. A sharp increase in the weekly rig count did not help crude prices. June gold added about 0.6% on the day to settle at $1,336.10 and up 0.9% for the week. Equities were headed for a lower close about 10 minutes before the bell as the Dow traded down 2.36% for the day, the S&P 500 traded down 2.16%, and the Nasdaq Composite traded down 2.31%.
Bitcoin futures (XBTJ8) for April delivery traded at $6,610, down about 2.4% on the CBOE after opening at $6,720 this morning. The digital currency’s trading range for the day was $6,480 to $6,880.
The Dow stock posting the largest daily percentage loss ahead of the close Friday was Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT) which traded down 4.01% at $142.21. The stock’s 52-week range is $92.98 to $173.24. Volume was about 30% below the daily average of around 6.4 million shares. The company had no specific news, but an escalating tariff war could hit the company hard.
The Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) traded down 3.42% at $324.89. The stock’s 52-week range is $175.47 to $371.60. Volume was about 25% below the daily average of around 6.4 million. Another industrial firm that investors are wary of given the potential damage the company could suffer in a real trade war. .
Nike Inc. (NYSE: NKE) traded down 3.10% at $67.43 in a 52-week range of $50.35 to $70.25. Volume of about 7.6 million shares was less than 10% below the daily average. The company had no specific news.
Intel Corp. (NASDAQ: INTC) traded down 3.10% at $48.82. The stock’s 52-week range is $33.23 to $53.78. Volume was about 40% below the daily average of around 35 million. The company had no specific news.
Of the Dow stocks, none is on track to close higher Friday and all 30 are set to close lower.
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