US markets retreated on Friday but closed off their session lows as investors digested the latest drama from the White House - Dow down 76-points or -0.35% and the broader S&P500 -0.18%. The technology-centric NASDAQ slipped -0.09%. President Trump's administration announced the departure of chief strategist Steve Bannon, who was a champion of economic nationalism. For the week, the Dow lost -0.84% and the S&P500 -0.65% (both indices booking their second consecutive weekly decline). The Nasdaq fell -0.64% to log its fourth consecutive weekly decline - its longest weekly losing streak since May 2016. Perhaps also worth noting that the annual US-South Korean military exercises start today (which have previously prompted North Korea to undertake missile tests).
On the US corporate earnings front, Foot Locker Inc slumped ~28% to record its worst single session performance since November 2008 after a poor second-quarter result that included a surprise -6% fall in same store sales (against consensus expectations for +0.8% improvement). With ~92% of S&P 500 companies having reported earnings so far this reporting season, ~73.7% have exceeded earnings estimates (above the historical average of 64%) and more than >68% have topped revenue consensus estimate (also above an average of 59%). Source: Thomson Reuters
