From Nasdaq, Inc.:

Asia-Pacific equity markets closed lower, except for China’s Shanghai Composite and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng. South Korea’s KOSPI, Japan’s Nikkei, Taiwan’s TAIEX, India’s SENSEX, and Australia’s ASX All Ordinaries all fell amidst agitation from a large hedge fund. U.S. and European markets are also feeling the impact of disappointing earnings and mixed expectations.
China’s housing authority reported that 162 projects in 57 cities have received bank financing of ¥29.43 billion ($4.09 billion) under a “white list” mechanism. At 10 AM ET, the Flash February reading for Consumer Confidence in the Eurozone will be published. The consensus calls for a modest improvement to -15.5 from January’s -16.1.
Today’s release of Fed meeting minutes and speeches from three Fed officials will shape the market’s sentiment. Technology and Consumer Discretionary sectors experienced downturns, with only Consumer Staples posting a gain. The Dow declined the least, down 0.17%, and the Russell 2000 fell the most, off 1.41%. Year-to-date market indicators remain positive for major indexes.
Palo Alto Networks (PANW) reported a top and bottom-line beat for the January quarter, but downside guidance caused a 23% drop in share price. Similarly, mixed results for Teladoc Health (TDOC) and SolarEdge (SEDG) miss marked forecasts and bring decreased share value. Dividend cuts and strong homebuilder reports show varied performance in today’s market.



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