Stock Market Live July 23: Japan Trade Deal News Drives S&P 500 (VOO) to New Highs
Key Points
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Japan and the U.S. reached a new trade agreement last night that will see tariffs lowered on Japanese car exports, $550 billion in new Japanese investments in the U.S.
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Earnings reports from large S&P 500 companies look largely positive this morning.
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Wednesday Wrap-up
The Vanguard S&P 500 ETF closed Wednesday at a new all-time high of 582.93, up 0.7%.
Otis Elevator Only Goes Down Today
Still hungry for more earnings news? We’ve got you covered. Yet another S&P 500 component company, this time elevator manufacturer Otis Worldwide (NYSE: OTIS | BSX Price Prediction), reported Q2 EPS of $1.05 this morning, $0.02 better than expected. On the down side, revenue for the quarter was only $3.6 billion, a bit below the consensus expectation of $3.7 billion.
Guidance was also light, with revenues of $14.5 billion or $14.6 billion below the forecast for $14.7 billion, and earnings ranging from $4 to $4.10, which at the midpoint is also short of analyst forecasts. Otis stock is unsurprisingly down on the news — 10.4%. On the plus side, at least the Voo is back up to a 0.4% gain.
Investors Discover Boston Scientific
In happier news, investors are rewarding Boston Scientific (NYSE: BSX) more generously for its report of $0.75 per share in Q2 earnings, which was $0.02 better than analyst estimates. Boston Scientific reported $5.1 billion in revenue, too, more than the $4.9 billion forecast. Its stock is up 3.2% after raising guidance for the coming third quarter, and through the end of this year as well.
Hasbro Wins in Q2
In further earnings news today, S&P 500 component company Hasbro (Nasdaq: HAS) reports that it earned $1.30 per share in Q2, $0.52 better than expected. Revenue of $980.8 million likewise greatly exceeded the expected $874.66 million.
Hasbro stock is nonetheless down 4.1%, and the Voo’s gain has shrunk to 0.2%.
This article will be updated throughout the day, so check back often for more daily updates.
The Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (NYSEMKT: VOO) is looking like it wants to hit a new all-time high today as shares rise 0.4% premarket. And what’s driving today’s rise?
In a word: Japan.
President Trump announced on Truth Social last night that Japan has signed “perhaps the largest Deal ever made” with the U.S., agreeing to “open their Country to Trade including Cars and Trucks, Rice and certain other Agricultural Products, and other things,” and to invest $550 billion in the U.S. A corresponding announcement from Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba noted that in return, the U.S. will lower tariffs on Japanese auto exports to the U.S. to 15%.
U.S. markets haven’t yet opened for trading, but on the other side of the world, Japanese automotive stocks are already soaring. Honda Motor (NYSE: HMC) and Nissan Motor stocks are both reportedly up 8%, and Toyota Motors (NYSE: TM) is up 11%, and premarket gains for these companies’ U.S. ADRs look even more robust.
Earnings
Back here in the U.S. earnings season continues to roll ahead. Among S&P 500 components:
Copper miner Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE: FCX) reported a $0.54 per share Q2 profit on $7.6 billion in quarterly sales, both numbers well ahead of expectations.
Earnings from electric utility stock NextEra Energy (NYSE: NEE) were more mixed. On the one hand, NextEra had solid profits of $1.05 per share, more than the $0.98 predicted. On the other hand, though, the company’s $6.7 billion in Q2 revenue fell short of the $7.3 billion Wall Street wanted to see — and the stock is trading down slightly pre-market.
Credit cruncher Moody’s Corporation (NYSE: MCO) says it earned $3.56 per share, a dime better than expected. Revenue of $1.9 billion for the quarter also beat expectations.
And bringing up the rear after a stream of defense stock reports yesterday, General Dynamics (NYSE: GD) reported $3.74 per share in Q2 profits, $0.30 more than expected. Q2 revenue of $13 billion likewise topped expectations.
Joel South covers large-cap stocks, dividend investing, and major market trends, with a focus on earnings analysis, valuation, and turning complex data into actionable insights for investors.
He brings more than 15 years of experience as an investor and financial journalist, including 12 years at The Motley Fool, where he served as an investment analyst, Bureau Chief, and later led the Fool.com investing news desk. He has also co-hosted an investing podcast and appeared across TV and radio discussing market trends.
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