CNBC Business News Update - Market Midday: Stocks Mixed, Labor Depart Releases Revised Payroll Numbers, Mega Millions Jackpot Hits Half Billion Dollars 8/21/24

Episode Date: August 21, 2024

From Wall Street to Main Street, the latest on the markets and what it means for your money. Updated regularly on weekdays, featuring CNBC expert analysis and sound from top business newsmakers. Anchored and reported by CNBC's Jessica Ettinger.

I'm Jessica Ettinger, CNBC. Wall Street, flattish this afternoon after the Labor Department released revised payroll numbers. The Dow is in the red, down 46 points. The S&P 500 index up a point and the Nasdaq down two points. Companies whose shares have hit fresh all-time highs today include D.R. Horton, the home builder, Ross Stores, TJX Companies, the parent of TJ Maxx and Marshalls, Coca-Cola, Procter & Gamble, Walmart, Berkshire Hathaway Class B shares, and Sherwin-Williams, to name a few. And about those revised payroll numbers out today. The Labor Department out with

a downward revision to non-farm payroll growth, reporting that the U.S. economy created 818,000 fewer jobs than the 2.9 million initially reported for the 12-month period through March of 24. All as we get set for the Fed conference in Jackson Hole, of course, which kicks off tomorrow. Let's bring in our senior markets commentator, Mike Santoli. Market got bounced around here, but the general take is that it doesn't seem to be worryingly soft, the job market that is. No, and this is, as you say, the job market through the first quarter of this year. So it obviously is about kind of cleaning up the data and retelling the story of the labor market that we knew coming through 2023 into 2024.

CNBC's Mike Santoli with CNBC's Carl Quintanilla. Ford will delay its new EV plant and cancel the three-row all-electric SUV it was planning. The company is shifting its EV strategy as it tries to be more nimble about producing lower-cost EVs. It will be coming out with an all-electric commercial van with production starting in 2026. An electric truck will be coming in the second half of 2027. They're going to be dropping their plans to build an all-electric three-row SUV. The market's just not there right now. Bottom line is this, guys. They realize they have to lower costs and they are moving as quickly as possible. CNBC's Phil LeBeau. TJ Maxx and Marshall's

parent TJX companies out with strong quarterly results for sales, and it's raising its full-year guidance as shoppers love the hunt and the discounts. The retailer's been taking market share from Target, Macy's, and others and has become a haven for price-sensitive consumers. Target shares, meantime, popping on better-than-expected quarterly results, saying sales are up for the first time in a year. But it gave a cautious outlook for the rest of the year. We reduced prices on over 5,000 items. We continue to see an incredibly resilient consumer.

Now, they've been facing the pressure of inflation and rising interest rates. They're continuing to look for value. But we've seen a pretty steady consumer environment. I think part of it is we still have a very strong labor market. Target CEO Brian Cornell on CNBC. Macy's shares dropping on its results, which were mixed, and it cut its full year sales forecast. Homebuilder Toll Brothers raised its outlook for the rest of the year. Mortgage rates are falling. It's pointing to solid demand for newly built homes, and it thinks that'll continue into next year.

Tesla recalling more than 9,000 Model X SUVs because the trim on the roof can separate. Friday night's Mega Millions jackpot. Now more than a half billion dollars. Nobody won last night, so the new prize is $527 million. Denny's today has pumpkin pecan pancakes back on menus. Jessica Ettinger, CNBC. The Investing Club. We're not about trading. We're about investing. Get invested. Join the club today. Go to cndc.com slash Jim's Club.