Crude Oil Prices Rise; Delta Air Lines Exceeds Earnings Expectations

U.S. stocks experienced a downturn toward the end of trading on Friday, with the Nasdaq Composite dropping more than 400 points.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 1.19%, settling at 42,129.32. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq index dipped by 1.16% to close at 19,252.53. Additionally, the S&P 500 also took a hit, decreasing by 1.10% to end the day at 5,853.26.

Sector Performance

Despite the overall decline in the market, energy stocks exhibited a positive trend, rising by 0.6% on Friday. In stark contrast, shares in the information technology sector experienced a notable retreat, falling by 2.1%.

Delta Air Lines Reports Strong Earnings

In a significant development, Delta Air Lines, Inc. (DAL) released its fourth-quarter earnings report, which exceeded analysts' expectations. Delta reported a 5.7% year-over-year increase in adjusted operating revenue, totaling $14.437 billion. The company’s GAAP operating revenue reached $15.56 billion, reflecting a 9.4% annual rise and beating the consensus estimate of $14.212 billion.

Delta shared that its average fuel price was adjusted to $2.34 per gallon, a decrease from last year’s figure of $3.00. The adjusted earnings per share (EPS) stood at $1.85, marking a 44.5% increase from the previous year and surpassing the expected EPS of $1.76.

Market Movers

In other notable market movements, shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) surged by 28%, reaching $11.82 after the company reported better-than-expected first-quarter financial results.

• Vision Marine Technologies Inc. (VMAR) saw its shares skyrocket by 53% to $2.33, as it regained compliance with Nasdaq's minimum stockholders' equity requirement.
• Savers Value Village, Inc. (SVV) also saw a rise, with shares climbing by 12% to $10.50 after the company announced preliminary fourth-quarter and full-year net sales.

On the downside, IGM Biosciences Inc. (IGMS) experienced a dramatic decline of 66%, bringing its share price down to $2.1250 after announcing it would be halting further development of its drugs.

Commodity Updates

In the commodities market, crude oil prices increased by 3.1%, reaching $76.21 per barrel. Gold prices also saw a boost, climbing 0.9% to $2,715.20. Silver rose by 0.9% to $31.290, while copper fell slightly by 0.2% to $4.3025.

Global Market Overview

European markets were generally lower on Friday. The eurozone's STOXX 600 index fell by 0.84%. In Germany, the DAX 40 dropped by 0.50%, while France's CAC 40 decreased by 0.79%. Spain's IBEX 35 Index fell by 1.5%, and London's FTSE 100 slipped by 0.86%.

In the Asia-Pacific region, major indices also closed lower. Japan's Nikkei 225 fell by 1.05%, while China's Shanghai Composite Index dipped by 1.33%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index declined by 0.92%, and India's BSE Sensex saw a decrease of 0.31%.

Economic Indicators

• Last month's nonfarm payrolls saw an increase of 256,000 jobs, surpassing the revised figure of 212,000 from November and exceeding expectations of 160,000.
• The unemployment rate decreased slightly from 4.2% to 4.1%, better than forecasts that anticipated no change.
• Average hourly earnings rose by 0.3% month-over-month in December, in alignment with expectations, though it was a slowdown from November's 0.4% increase. On a yearly basis, wages rose by 3.9%, slightly below the 4% forecast.
• Consumer sentiment, as reported by the University of Michigan, dropped to 73.2 in January from 74 in the previous month.

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