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The Dow climbed to a record high in intraday trading Tuesday following several better-than-expected earnings reports, while the S&P 500 also gained, and the Nasdaq was slightly lower.

UnitedHealth Group (UNH) led gains on the Dow after the health insurance provider beat profit forecasts as it posted higher revenue from its Optum health care unit.

Shares of PNC Financial Services Group (PNC) also rose as the bank reported results that exceeded forecasts and gave a stronger full-year outlook for net interest income (NII).

Match Group (MTCH) shares took off after it was revealed activist investor Starboard Value has taken a 6.6% stake in the operator of online dating services, and is calling for the company to explore a sale.

Shares of firms in the housing sector, including Pultegroup (PHM), Builders FirstSource (BLDR), and Home Depot (HD), advanced amid rising optimism the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates this year, boosting home sales. 

Charles Schwab (SCHW) shares tumbled as the investment and stock trading provider said it would have to downsize to maintain profitability.

The price of gold rose to a record high, while oil futures fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note declined. The dollar was up on the euro, pound, and yen. Most major cryptocurrencies traded higher.

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Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court, Abuja ordered a bench (arrest) warrant on a medical doctor at the health facility of Kuje Correctional Centre identified as Abraham Ehizojie for failing to produce the medical report of Binance executive, Tygran Gambaryan or show up in court.

According to Nairametrics, the Nigerian government had accused Binance and its executives, Tygran Gambaryan and the fleeing Nadeem Anjarwalla, of allegedly conspiring amongst themselves to conceal the origin of the financial proceeds of their alleged unlawful activities in Nigeria, including $35,400, 000.

The Nigerian authorities said they committed an offence contravening Section 21 (a) and punishable under Section 18(3) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.

It must be recalled that Justice Nwite had ordered the Nigerian Correctional Service doctor to produce the medical reports of the Tigran Gambaryan, warning the correctional service against non-compliance to the court’s directives.

He added that the medical practitioner at the prison service will have to appear in court if the medical report is not produced.

At the proceedings on Tuesday, July 16, 2024, Gambaryan’s lawyer, Mark Mordi said in open court that the judge’s order had not been complied with.

The judge then asked a prison official who brought the Binance executive to court about the development.

The prison official said he got the court order and delivered the order to the doctor last week Tuesday, adding “He is not here and I expected him to be here.”

The EFCC counsel, Ekene Iheanacho told the judge that he thought that the medical officer will be in court today.

Mordi then said the court should issue a bench warrant against the medical officer of the prison service and that his client be remanded in a hospital immediately so that he can be diagnosed to see what his true state of health is.

“My client came in here in a wheelchair. He has been complaining of back p+in. We need to be careful of the life in our hands,” Mordi said. heanacho responded that he does not dispute the fact that the defendant should be given adequate treatment but he has issues with being remanded in hospital custody.

After hearing from the lawyers, Nwite said it is unfortunate that a government institutions will be treating his orders with levity.

“I hereby make an order of bench warrant on the medical doctor at the Kuje Correctional Service, Abraham to appear before this court,” he said.

He also ordered that Gambaryan be taken to the Nizamiye hospital for a medical checkup for 24 hours, at any time of his choice but under full security.

The case was then adjourned to 11 October 2024 for continuation of trial.

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Homebuilder confidence remained subdued in July, dropping to its lowest reading since December as high borrowing costs weighed on sentiment. 

The National Association of Home Builders' index of confidence came in at 42 in July, down a point from the prior month—a reading that shows a majority of builders believe the market is in poor condition. Economists were expecting the index to move up one point instead, according to a survey of economists by the and Dow Jones Newswires.

Homebuilders were down on their current sales and traffic of prospective buyers. However, they were slightly more optimistic about expected sales in the next six months.

High mortgage rates have discouraged potential buyers, as high borrowing costs pressure housing affordability. The average rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is still hovering near 7%, but homebuilders are hoping that interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve can change that.

“While buyers appear to be waiting for lower interest rates, the six-month sales expectation for builders moved higher, indicating that builders expect mortgage rates to edge lower later this year as inflation data are showing signs of easing,” said NAHB Chairman Carl Harris.

The central bank's influential fed funds rate and traders' expectations of it affect the trajectory of mortgage rates.

Investors seem to think that trajectory is on the right track, as homebuilder stocks rallied on that same optimism Tuesday. Shares of D.R. Horton (DHI), Toll Brothers (TOL), PulteGroup (PHM), KB Home (KBH) and Lennar Corporation (LEN) all traded more than 3% higher.

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Import prices were unchanged in June which could be a good sign for U.S. consumers.

The flat month comes after a 0.2% decline in May, which was the first decline in import prices all year, according to a report released today from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Economists expected import prices to fall further in June, according to a survey from the  and .

However, the static import prices are still good news for consumers who often end up paying higher prices for more expensive imports.

"Lower import costs, partly due to a strong U.S. dollar boosted by high-yield investments, are benefiting the U.S," wrote Kyra Kendrick, economist at Moody's Analytics.

"This strength lowers import prices and affects U.S. export pricing, leading to declining terms of trade," Kendrick said. "While this may slow national income growth, it also encourages domestic productivity investments and cost-cutting, helping to contain inflation pressures at home."

Export prices did indeed fall, moving lower by 0.5%, but it was a slower decline than in the previous month.

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Market participants are increasingly convinced that the Federal Reserve will start cutting its benchmark interest rate in September, with more cuts to follow before the end of the year, even as Fed officials say they need to see more economic data before adjusting policy.

According to the CME Group’s FedWatch tool, which forecasts rate movements based on fed funds futures trading data, traders are pricing in a 100% chance that the Federal Reserve will cut its influential fed funds rate in September. That's up from the 73% likelihood priced in just a week ago.

Market participants are also pricing in a high probability that once the Fed makes its first move in September it will continue cutting at the November and December meetings of the policy-setting Federal Open Market Committee. Traders predict there's a roughly 60% chance the fed funds rate will be 50 basis points lower than its current rate in November and 75 basis points lower in December.

The increased expectations follow a number of data releases that have shown inflation is moderating and economic activity is slowing, an indication that the Fed's two-year campaign of high interest rates is having its intended effect.

Fed officials have acknowledged the progress in the fight against inflation, but have said they will be reliant on economic data to give them more confidence that inflation is moving toward their annual goal of 2%. They've also said they are watching labor market conditions, which could spur the Fed to act if they deteriorate significantly.

On Monday, Fed Chair Jerome Powell said central bankers are making rate-cut decisions on a "meeting-by-meeting" basis, declining to give a timeline for rate cuts.

A rate cut would give some relief to businesses and households pressured by high borrowing costs, as rates on mortgages, credit cards and other loans would follow the Fed's lead. The fed funds rate, which have been at a two-decade high for the past year, influences costs on all sorts of loans.

While market participants are increasingly confident the Fed will cut rates soon, economic data and comments from Fed officials could change that quickly. At the start of this year, fed fund futures indicated that traders were pricing in six rate cuts by the Fed this year, but those expectations quickly faded as inflation was more stubborn than expected in the first several months of 2024.

The next FOMC meeting will be convened in two weeks, but traders see almost no chance of a rate cut at that meeting. Instead, they'll be scrutinizing the FOMC's post-meeting statement and what Powell says during his press conference for clues on when the Fed might act.

At its last meeting in June, a quarterly survey of FOMC members showed that they expected just one rate cut before the end of the year.

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Shares of State Street (STT) rose after the financial services firm reported record-high numbers for two key measures of assets held and its results beat forecasts, aided by rising interest income and management fees.

The bank posted assets under custody/administration (AUC/A) of $44.31 trillion, and and assets under management (AUM) of $4.42 trillion, both record highs, in its latest quarterly release. (AUC and AUM essentially measure assets for which it does, and doesn't, make allocation decisions, respectively.)

Earnings per share (EPS) came in at $2.15, with revenue higher by 2.6% to $3.19 billion. Both were above Visible Alpha's consensus estimates. 

Interest income was up 6.4% to $735 million, and fee revenue increased 1.5% to $2.46 billion, boosted by an 11% jump in management fees.

CEO Ron O’Hanley said that the company’s strong revenue growth and “well-controlled expenses” resulted in an 11.9% return on equity (ROE).

State Street raised its provision for credit losses to $145 million from $136 million a year earlier. The firm said that reflected “an increase in loan loss reserves associated with certain commercial real estate loans.”

State Street shares traded at their highest level in more than a year, rising some 3% in recent trading.

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