Dow Surges as UnitedHealth and Retail Sales Boost Market Sentiment

The Dow Jones Industrial Average led gains on Wall Street, driven by UnitedHealthcare's strong quarterly results and unexpectedly robust retail sales data. Bank of America also beat expectations, while traders anticipate a rate cut by the Federal Reserve in September. However, Morgan Stanley and Trump-linked stocks faced some declines.

The Dow led Wall Street's main indexes higher on Tuesday, bolstered by UnitedHealth's robust results and unexpectedly strong retail sales data, signaling a resilient U.S. economy. UnitedHealth Group soared 4.3% following a second-quarter profit beat, lifting both the blue-chip Dow and the S&P 500 Health Care index to all-time highs.

Bank of America saw a 3.6% climb after its net interest-income forecast and second-quarter profit surpassed expectations, pushing the S&P 500 Financials index to a new record. However, Morgan Stanley dipped 1%, missing revenue estimates for its wealth management sector, while Charles Schwab fell 7% due to lower net income.

Retail sales in June remained unchanged, defying expectations of a 0.3% drop, and retail sales minus automobiles rose by 0.4%. Despite the strong data, traders are still betting on a rate cut by the Federal Reserve in September. Meanwhile, Trump-linked stocks retreated after an initial rally earlier this week.