Morgans AM: Thursday, 3 October 2024

US equity markets settled little changed on the second trading day of the fourth quarter, with investors in a generally cautious mood against the backdrop of rising tensions in the Middle East and a strike at U.S. East Coast and Gulf ports - Dow added +40-points or +0.09%, advancing for the eight time in the past ten sessions. Salesforce Inc rallied +3.18% to be the leading performer in the 30-stock index, buoyed by a broker upgrade. Nike Inc -6.77% after the sporting apparel and equipment giant after reported a decline in fiscal first quarter earnings per share (EPS) and sales and did not provide full year guidance after the close of the previous session. Apple Inc added +0.25%, with Bloomberg reporting that the company is working on new versions of a number of its products, including the low-cost iPhone SE, with plans to release them over the next year.