The stock markets in New York rebounded somewhat on Wednesday after the heavy price losses a day earlier. Tech and software company Microsoft posted a solid profit thanks to better-than-expected quarterly figures.
On the other hand, investors were less satisfied with the results of Google’s parent company Alphabet and sent that share considerably lower. Boeing’s trade update also failed to please investors. We are also looking forward to the quarterly figures that Facebook parent Meta Platforms will announce after the closing bell.
Attention will also continue to be paid to the developments surrounding the war in Ukraine. Russia has turned off the gas tap to Poland and Bulgaria because the countries refuse to pay in rubles. Moscow is thus retaliating against Western sanctions following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Shortly after opening, the Dow-Jones index was 0.5 percent higher at 33,390 points. The broad S&P 500 rose 0.6 percent to 4,199 points. Tech gauge Nasdaq won 0.9 percent to 12,589 points after the price fall of 4 percent a day earlier.
Microsoft won almost 5 percent. The software group grew again in the past quarter with its cloud branch. In recent years, growth accelerated, partly due to the corona crisis, making it possible for more companies to work from home. The cloud division is now the most significant part of Microsoft and accounts for about 40 percent of the turnover and profit of the Windows maker. Alphabet (minus 3.6 percent) especially noticed that companies in Europe have become more cautious about spending on advertising after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Aircraft manufacturer Boeing fell 7.5 percent after disappointing results. The company also announced that it would pause production of the 777X device until 2023. Therefore, the device will only be delivered in 2025, more than a year later than planned. The quarterly figures of automaker General Motors (plus 2 percent) were in the taste.
Spotify fell 8.5 percent, despite the music streaming service gaining more users in the first quarter in the wake of the outcry earlier this year over comedian Joe Rogan’s podcasts. The originally Swedish company now has 422 million monthly active users, an increase of 19 percent compared to a year earlier.