(Bloomberg) — Stocks fell from all-time highs as a disappointing forecast from the world’s largest retailer added to concern about the economy’s main engine.
Walmart Inc., the first big-box retailer to report results after the holiday season, sank 6.5%. Its chief financial officer acknowledged “uncertainties related to consumer behavior and global economic and geopolitical conditions.” That’s just days after retail sales signaled an abrupt pullback by consumers. A slide in banks also weighed on trading, with JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. each falling over 4%.
Retailers like Walmart tend to perform well during tough economic times. It’s also true that Walmart usually starts the year with a conservative guidance. But the fact is consumers are dealing with stubborn prices and high borrowing costs, and many are turning to credit cards and other debt to support their spending — with a rising number of those loans starting to go bad.
“This news out of Walmart raises even more concerns about the state of the consumer,” said Matt Maley at Miller Tabak + Co. “We have already seen some very disappointing numbers on consumer confidence and last week’s retail sales data was much lower than expected. It raises some questions about how strong growth will be over the rest of this year.”
Those uncertainties hit a market dealing with risks ranging from tariffs to inflation, geopolitics and tech valuations. After rallying more than 20% last year, US stocks have trailed global counterparts — with the S&P 500 failing to achieve meaningful breakouts during the three times it closed at a record in 2025.
“A correction may soon be necessary to restore a more attractive valuation for US stocks,” said Fawad Razaqzada at City Index and Forex.com. “While there are no overt warning signs just yet, it pays to be alert to signals that would put the S&P 500 forecast on a downward trajectory in the short-term.”
The S&P 500 slipped 0.6%. The Nasdaq 100 slid 0.8%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 1.3%. The Russell 2000 dropped 1%. The KBW Bank Index slumped 2.5%. A gauge of the Magnificent Seven megacaps fell 0.7%.
The yield on 10-year Treasuries fell three basis points to 4.50%. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.7%. The yen led gains in major currencies on bets the Bank of Japan will hike rates sooner rather than later.
“Walmart, a bellwether for consumer spending, raised another red flag, just as mounting trade tensions threaten to drive up the costs of goods,” said Jose Torres at Interactive Brokers.
Aside from the slide in consumer companies, banks are among the groups hit the hardest.
Among the reasons, Jason Goldberg at Barclays cited Walmart’s outlook and a contraction in the Conference Board leading economic index as factors fueling concerns.
But there’s also the fact that banks have also “had a decent move” resulting in “some profit taking,” the analyst wrote.
The US stock market can flip into a correction territory as retail and institutional buyers are running out of steam, according to Goldman Sachs Group Inc.’s Scott Rubner, the bank’s managing director for global markets and tactical specialist.
Demand from retail traders, which have been piling into US stocks at a record pace this year, is expected to slow down ahead of the tax paying season in March. Flows from pension funds can also “run out of juice,” according to Rubner attributing it to seasonal trends. January and February are typically the strongest months of the year for yearly asset allocations, followed by weaker inflows in March.
Meantime, a measure of the S&P 500’s ability to brush off fear-inducing headlines and surprise policy announcements is the strongest since before the Covid-19 pandemic.
Investors are now less fixated on one particular variable — like a key inflation report — than in recent years, making the market more resilient to macro shocks, according to analysts at 22V Research.
“More variables, like earnings, industry group, and factor exposures, matter,” said Kevin Brocks, director at 22V Research. “The macro picture has improved and the economy is further from recession.”
Corporate Highlights:
Boeing Co.’s chief executive officer said Elon Musk and his DOGE team are helping the planemaker work through bottlenecks that have caused the next fleet of Air Force One jets to fall years behind schedule.
Carvana Co. fell after the used-car retailer reported lower gross profit per vehicle and shrinking wholesale volumes for the latest quarter, undercutting a turnaround narrative that had buoyed the stock.
Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. posted its fastest pace of revenue growth in more than a year, as the Chinese internet pioneer co-founded by Jack Ma takes another step toward a recovery after years of turbulence.
Hasbro Inc. is targeting mid-single-digit sales growth through 2027 and savings of about $1 billion, as the toymaker laid out a plan to expand its reach over the next few years.
Herbalife Ltd., a nutrition company, reported fourth-quarter adjusted earnings per share that beat consensus estimates.
Birkenstock Holding Plc reported faster sales of its high-end sandals and clogs while keeping its annual financial targets unchanged, as the German shoe company seeks to convince investors that it can stay fashionable.
Grab Holdings Ltd. predicted full-year revenue that trailed estimates, suggesting caution around a Southeast Asian ride-hailing and food delivery market where GoTo Group remains a formidable rival.
Key events this week:
Eurozone HCOB manufacturing & services PMI, Friday
US S&P Global manufacturing & services PMI, existing home sales, consumer sentiment, Friday
Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
The S&P 500 fell 0.6% as of 2:32 p.m. New York time
The Nasdaq 100 fell 0.8%
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.3%
The MSCI World Index fell 0.5%
The Russell 2000 Index fell 1%
KBW Bank Index fell 2.5%
Bloomberg Magnificent 7 Total Return Index fell 0.7%
Currencies
The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.7%
The euro rose 0.7% to $1.0494
The British pound rose 0.6% to $1.2658
The Japanese yen rose 1.1% to 149.77 per dollar
Cryptocurrencies
Bitcoin rose 2.2% to $98,405.64
Ether rose 1.8% to $2,758.3
Bonds
The yield on 10-year Treasuries declined three basis points to 4.50%
Germany’s 10-year yield declined two basis points to 2.53%
Britain’s 10-year yield was little changed at 4.61%
Commodities
West Texas Intermediate crude rose 0.4% to $72.57 a barrel
Spot gold rose 0.2% to $2,937.80 an ounce
This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.
–With assistance from Cecile Gutscher, Sujata Rao, Margaryta Kirakosian, Anand Krishnamoorthy and Divya Patil.
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