Overview

• UnitedHealth’s shares jumped roughly 11.6% after Berkshire Hathaway revealed a $1.6 billion stake and Scion Asset Management turned bullish, driving the Dow to a record intraday level.
• The Dow opened about 0.5% higher at nearly 45,150, surpassing its early-December peak and becoming the last of the major U.S. indexes to reach a fresh high this year.
• July retail sales rose in line with forecasts while the University of Michigan consumer confidence index fell to 58, fueling bets on a 25-basis-point Fed rate cut in September.
• Healthcare led sector gains on the S&P 500, set for its strongest week since October 2022, as Applied Materials plunged 11.3% on weak guidance and Intel climbed about 3% on reports of potential government stake talks.
• President Trump’s planned tariffs on steel and semiconductors and his upcoming meeting with President Putin introduce further uncertainty to the market outlook.