CNBC Business News Update - Market Open: Stocks Edge Lower, Housing Starts Tumble, H&R Block Shares Surge

Episode Date: August 16, 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 Peter Schacknow

I'm Peter Schach, now CNBC. third of one percent. The Dow remains on pace for its best week since mid-December. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq are still on track for their largest weekly gains since early November. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq are also aiming at a seventh straight day of gains. Wall Street's mood has been boosted by economic data that shows the U.S. economy is holding up better than many had feared, without changing the view that the Fed is ready to cut interest rates in September. Dana Peterson is chief economist at the conference board. We had many different factors all converging at once that were quite really unrelated and we didn't have strong data suggesting that the U.S. was going into recession or that the employment market was going to collapse. So I think that I still think the same things now that the economy,

yes, it's slowing, but it's still pretty healthy. And certainly with retail sales coming in as strong as they did, consumers are still interested in buying goods and going to bars and restaurants. This morning's first economic report shows that housing starts tumbled 6.8 percent in July, a bigger than anticipated drop. That came amid higher mortgage rates, although those rates have come down during August. One more number on the schedule for today. The University of Michigan will issue the mid-August read for its widely-followed Consumer Sentiment Index.

Shares of H&R Block jumping more than 10% this morning. The tax preparation company reported better than expected quarterly results and also announced a 17% dividend hike. Peter Schach now, CNBC.