CNBC Business News Update - Market Open: Stocks Mixed, United Health Lowers Outlook, Trump Calls For Fed To Cut Rates 4/17/25

Episode Date: April 17, 2025

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 by CNBC's Jessica Ettinger.

I'm Jessica Edinger CNBC mixed markets out of the gate this morning with the Dow plunging 545 points more than 1% United Health shares leading that lower they're down 17% the S&P 500 index in the green by 6 points the NASDAQ up 33 points this morning United Health shares are having their worst day in the history of the company. The health insurer brought down its guidance by 12% because it's fighting patients less about seeing doctors and getting health care after its CEO was murdered on a New York City street. And that's costing the company more. So I think what they're really talking about here is more utilization. They're seeing more

activity in the physician and outpatient sites like surgery centers and things like that. Probably United and maybe the industry pulling back on prior authorizations on kind of the intensity of some of the activity they do to manage utilization, which obviously causes a bunch of consumer dissatisfaction. They're pulling back on that a little bit.

I'd suspect that what they're seeing is more utilization as a result and a lot more than they were expecting. Bernstein's Lance Wilkes on CNBC. Fewer people applied for unemployment benefits last week as the job market remains solid, but the number of people continuing to collect benefits popped higher, hinting that it's taking people longer to find the next job.

President Trump posting that Fed Chair Jay Powell's termination cannot come fast enough. Powell said yesterday the Fed's going to have to wait and see whether it can lower interest rates anymore now that the president's tariffs are set to boost U.S. inflation. Target's CEO will meet with National Action Network's Reverend Al Sharpton. The struggling retailer's seen sales tank since it pulled Pride merchandise last year and rolled back DEI programs. The civil rights leader's considering another boycott. Target has lost a third of its value just this year, shares down 30%. Eli Lilly's weight loss pill has some positive results.

Companies saying that its weight loss pill met the company's goals in the first of seven phase three trials. Now the pill, or for Glippron, helped people lose almost 8% of their body weight at the highest dose. 8% of people on the highest dose dropped out of the trial because of the side effects, nausea, vomiting. Now Lilly plans to seek approval for obesity by the end of this year and diabetes next year.

So this would be the first small molecule pill for weight loss. So th small molecule pill for w small molecule is an impo although there is an oral from novo nordis called r peptide and that's much m small molecules. It's bas we all know, we think of medicine cabinets and you

more quickly. CNBC's Angelica people's luxury retailer. Aram as says it's increasing prices in the U.S. for its iconic luxury goods like the Birkin bag and other handbags in response to the Trump tariffs. American Express, with some relief for investors today, its shares were lower, but it's holding its full year guidance steady, saying customers are still spending in the face of the tariff turmoil. Its quarterly results topped analysts expectations. The company also said that based on spending and credit trends, as well as the current economic outlook, it's maintaining its guidance for the full years. CNBC's Dominic Chu Spotify back up and running after a widespread outage yesterday for the music streaming service.

Michaels ramping up its party supplies and balloons to try to pick up where Party City left off according to Retail Dive. Wall Street will be closed tomorrow for the Good Friday holiday. Jessica Edinger, CNBC. Introducing CNBC Plus, the new streaming platform from the number one source in business news. Watch live or on demand. Access any market, anytime, anywhere. Start streaming. Go to CNBC.com slash plus now.