Falconry statements by Jerome Powell have slowed Wall Street

Falconry statements by the US Federal Reserve governor have slowed Wall Street after it had previously benefited from the largely positive balance sheet season. Fed chairman Jerome Powell admitted the risk of higher inflation. It is time to cut back on monthly bond purchases, but it is still too early to raise interest rates, said the Fed chief via webcast during a panel discussion on the BIS-SARB Centenary Conference. The technology-heavy Nasdaq then slipped deeper into the red. The Dow and S & P-500 had reached new all-time highs shortly after the starting bell, but could not hold them. The willingness to buy also declined because of the upcoming weekend. The Dow Jones index rose 0.2 percent. The S&P 500 fell 0.1 percent. The Nasdaq composite lost 0.8 percent. The fact that the struggling Chinese real estate giant Evergrande averted bankruptcy - for the time being - provided some relief. The corporation made an overdue interest payment of $ 83.5 million. A default on these bonds would have likely turned into the largest corporate bankruptcy in Asia, arguably with global appeal. But this shouldn't be more than a breath of fresh air in the drama, warned traders. It was also noted positively that US President Joe Biden sees difficulties in raising corporate taxes. The US purchasing managers' indices provided hardly any impetus. The Nasdaq was burdened by the drop in prices at Snap (-26.6%) and Intel (-11.7%). Snap expects growth to slow following recent changes to Apple's privacy policy. Facebook shares fell 5 percent, Twitter 4.8 and Alphabet 3 percent. Intel earned more than expected in the third quarter and also raised its sales forecast for the current fiscal year. However, the chip manufacturer cannot meet customer demand quickly enough, which is why sales in the third quarter just missed market expectations and will probably not reach them in the current fourth quarter either. Outside the tech area, credit card company American Express stocks rose 5.4 percent. The company increased its sales and profits in the third quarter and benefited from its customers' willingness to spend, especially in the restaurants. Honeywell lost 3.2 percent. The price of the special purpose vehicle (Spac) Digital World Acquisition used by ex-President Donald Trump shot up by a further 107 percent after the price jump of 357 percent from Thursday. Trump announced the founding of his Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG) on Wednesday, which will, among other things, launch an online platform called Truth Social. To go public, TMTG is to merge with Digital World.