U.S. equity markets slipped in early morning trading following a global market selloff.
Two central banks in the U.S. and in Japan have decided to hold monetary policy steady. The markets were also in flux awaiting the vote next week on Brexit. June 23 is the day Britain will vote on its membership in the European Union.
In the U.S., the Fed warned about an economic slowdown. Now the market expectations are that there’s less than a 50 percent chance for a rate hike this year, even though the Fed continued to say there still could be two hikes this year. Fed Chair Janet Yellen said the central bank wants more clear signs of economic growth before it starts raising rates.
Given the concern about the global economy after the vote on Brexit, the next few days could be choppy. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.8 percent to 17,494.95, while the S&P 500 was down 0.9 percent to 2,052.35 at nearly 10:30 a.m.
In the retail and apparel sector, shares of Macy’s Inc. rose 1.6 percent to $32.45 after news broke that the retailer and its union had reached an agreement that would avoid a strike.
Shares of Chico’s FAS Inc. were down 1.3 percent to $10.68. The company is still in the middle of a proxy fight with activist investor Barington Capital Group. Chico’s on Thursday said the company was “successfully executing on new strategic plan,” noting in a letter sent to shareholders that the progress made demonstrates that the company is on the right path.
Shares of PVH Corp. were down 1.5 percent to $95.88, likely dragged down by the global selloff. PVH’s chief executive officer Emanuel “Manny” Chirico said at his presentation Wednesday at the Piper Jaffray Consumer Conference that department stores sales in the second quarter have started to “pick up” for the company’s brands.
