US equity markets rebounded, with all three benchmark indices logging their largest daily percentage gains since 10 August despite some more hawkish pronouncements from various Federal Reserve officials - Dow gained +436-points or +1.4%, with 3M Co (up +3.39%) and Nike Inc (up +3.17%) among notable performers. A US$1 move in any one of the 30 components of the Dow equates to a 6.59-point swing. The broader S&P500 rose +1.83%, with Utilities (up +3.14%) and Consumer Discretionary (+3.08%) climbing over >3% to lead ten of the eleven primary sectors higher. Energy (down -1.15%) was the only primary sector to settle in the red, with Exxon Mobil Corp falling -0.85%, Chevron Corp -1.28% and Occidental Petroleum Corp -2.17%. United Airlines Holdings Inc rose +5.52% after the air carrier raised its third-quarter revenue growth outlook, citing continued "strong" demand exiting a "robust" summer. The company now expects revenue to be ~12% above the same period in pre-pandemic 2019, compared with previous growth guidance of ~11%. The company expects capacity to be down 10% to 11%, compared with previous expectations of down about 11%. And with costs in line with, to slightly better than expectations, but spread over greater capacity, costs per available seat miles, excluding fuel, profit sharing and nonrecurring charges, is expected to be up +16% versus previous expectations of up 16% to 17%. United raised its estimate for average fuel price per gallon to US$3.83 from US$3.81. The Nasdaq rebounded +2.12%, snapping a seven session losing streak (the technology-centric indice’s longest such streak since 4 November, 2016). Apple Inc’s (up +0.93%) hosted their launch event – titled “Far Out” – overnight, unveiling three new Apple Watches and updated AirPods Pro. The company said it did not increase the prices on its iPhone 14 line-up as a number of analysts had speculated. McCormick & Co Inc fell over >4.5% in extended trading (following a +3.41% gain in regular trading) after the spice maker and distributor said that third-quarter sales have fallen short of its expectations. Sales are expected to rise by ~3% in third quarter, while adjusted earnings per share (EPS) are forecast to be ~US$0.65c (down from US$0.80c in the year-ago period). Current consensus analyst forecasts are for McCormick to report adjusted EPS of US$0.83 cents a share when it reports quarterly earnings in early October. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 gained +2.21%. Twitter Inc gained +6.6% after The Wall Street Journal reported that a judge has ruled Elon Musk can amend his countersuit against the social-media company he agreed to buy for US$44B to include a whistleblower report but denied Mr Musk’s request to postpone the trial to November.
