US stocks hover near record territory

McDonald’s (MCD) shares rose more than 3% in premarket trading after reporting better-than-expected third quarter earnings.

Same-store sales rose 14.6% compared to the same time period in 2019. The fast food chain credited the continued strength of its new chicken sandwiches, a celebrity meal deal with singer Saweetie and the nationwide expansion of its loyalty program for the improved sales.

An increase in check prices from larger order sizes and menu price increases also contributed to sales spike.

McDonald’s stock is up more than 10% for the year.

From supply chain chaos to worker shortages, America’s economic recovery ran into some serious challenges in the third quarter of the year.

Economists polled by Refinitiv expect that between July and September America’s economy grew at the slowest pace since the recovery began — an annualized rate of 2.7% — and a massive step down from the 6.7% rate in the spring.

At 2.7%, the pace of US gross domestic product growth, the broadest measure of economic activity, would pretty much be where it was before the pandemic. The growth rate in the third quarter of 2019, for example, was 2.8%.

So it’s not … terrible. It’s just bad news by recovery standards.

Read more here.

After stocks closed at record highs, they are slightly lower in premarket trading.

Here’s where things stand as of 6:25 am ET:

What a difference a month makes.

Stocks sank in September on worries about inflation, the rise of the Covid-19 Delta variant, China’s crackdown on top tech firms and Washington gridlock potentially killing the chances that President Biden’s stimulus package gets passed.

But as October ends, Wall Street is in a festive mood. The Dow ended the day up nearly 15 points Tuesday to hit an all-time high and is not far from the 36,000 mark. The S&P 500, also at a record level, rose 0.2% while the Nasdaq gained 0.1%.

Tesla (TSLA) shares are soaring, lifting the company’s market value above $1 trillion to another new peak. The stocks of Dow components Microsoft (MSFT) and Salesforce (CRM) and chip giants AMD (AMD) and Nvidia (NVDA) also are at their highest-ever levels.

Investors are so giddy that they might be almost bordering on complacency.

Read more here.

American consumers are feeling good again.

Supply chain issues and sky-high inflation have done little to knock consumer confidence as people plan to spend big on big-ticket purchases, such as houses, cars and major appliances. And that’s a strong signal that consumer spending will continue through the holiday season and the end of the year.

The consumer confidence index rose to 113.8 points in October, beating economists’ expectations and reversing a three-month downward trend, according to The Conference Board, which puts the index together. It was the highest level since July, when the index stood at 125.1 points.

Read more here.