Overview

• US services-sector activity unexpectedly stalled at a 50.1 reading in July, while S&P Global’s composite PMI rose to 55.1, indicating continued overall expansion.
• Wall Street’s main indexes pared early gains, leaving the Dow down 0.14 percent, the S&P 500 off 0.03 percent and the Nasdaq up 0.18 percent.
• Fed futures reflect the uncertainty by pricing a 90 percent chance of a rate cut in September, up sharply from about 63 percent a week ago.
• President Trump’s firing of the Bureau of Labor Statistics head and threats of up to 250 percent tariffs on pharmaceuticals along with potential duties on India have stoked policy-driven volatility.
• Palantir Technologies shares jumped about 8 percent after its Q2 earnings beat expectations and revenue topped $1 billion for the first time, illustrating the outsized impact of corporate results on markets.