US equity markets retreated although coronavirus concerns couldn’t knock technology stocks off their stride - Dow fell -361-points or -1.39%, erasing the gains for the week to date. The broader S&P500 shed -0.56% . Airlines (United Airlines Holdings down -7.25% and Delta Air Lines Inc -5.04%) and cruise operators (Carnival Corp down -4.83% and Royal Caribbean -5.89%) were under pressure. S&P Global Ratings downgraded United Airlines Holdings Inc debt one notch to B+ late in the session from BB-. The ratings agency said it expects the airline to generate "substantial cash flow deficit," due to a "steep decline" in bookings due to the COVID-19 pandemic. America’s fourth largest lender by assets, Wells Fargo and Company (down -2.08%) is preparing to cut thousands of jobs starting later this year due to pressure to “dramatically reduce costs”, according to a Bloomberg report. Wells Fargo reports their second quarter result next Tuesday night AEST (14 July). However, the technology-centric NASDAQ added +0.53% to 10,547.75, logging its fifth record closing high in the past six sessions and 26th of 2020. Gains for the Nasdaq and Nasdaq 100 accelerated in the closing hour of trading. Amazon.com Inc rose +3.3% to a fresh all-time high. On a combined basis, Amazon and Microsoft Corp (+0.70%) have seen their market capitalisations increase by US$1.1 trillion year-to-date. Netflix Inc rose +0.99% to see the streaming platform’s market capitalisation (US$223.3B) surpass Verizon Communication’s (US$223..2B) for the first time. Apple Inc rose +0.36%, with Berkshire Hathaway’s 22% stake in the company representing more than 22% of Warren Buffet’s investment vehicle’s market capitalisation. Tesla Inc rose +2.08%, with Chief Executive Elon Musk said in remarks made via a video message at the opening of Shanghai’s annual World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC) that the company is “very close” to achieving level 5 autonomous driving technology. Tesla has become the highest-valued automaker as its shares surged to record highs and its market capitalisation overtook that of former front-runner Toyota Motors Corp and the electric vehicle maker is the 16th largest stock in the US by market capitalisation (at ~US$253B) – but is still not in the S&P500. Bed Bath & Beyond tumbled -24.5% after the retailer reported a double-digit sales decline during the company’s fiscal first quarter after the close of the previous session. Harley Davidson Inc (up +0.63%) announced that it will lay off 500 employees this year as part of new Chief Executive Officer’s (CEO) Jochen Zeitz’s efforts to revive the struggling motorcycle maker. Chief Financial Officer (CFO) John Olin will also depart the company immediately.
