-- Consumer stocks were mixed Tuesday afternoon, with the State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLP) decreasing 0.3% and the State Street Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLY) rising 2.5%.
In sector news, Redbook US same-store sales rose by 7% from a year earlier in the week ended April 11 after a 7.6% year-over-year increase in the previous week. "Many stores closed on Easter Sunday so that employees could spend time with their families, which meant Easter week sales were based on six days instead of seven compared to last year," Redbook said, adding that sales during the week were driven by seasonal items.
In corporate news, FedEx (FDX) said its finance chief will step down in early June as the parcel delivery giant completes the spinoff of its freight business into a new publicly listed company. FedEx shares were down 0.4%.
United Airlines (UAL) Chief Executive Scott Kirby proposed a potential combination with American Airlines (AAL) during a late February meeting with President Donald Trump, Reuters reported Monday, citing two unnamed sources familiar with the matter. A consolidated carrier would be more competitive globally, aligning with the administration's focus on international trade deficits, the news outlet quoted Kirby as saying. United shares rose 2.4%, and American jumped 8%.
Lucid (LCID) said Tuesday that it has priced an underwritten public stock offering to generate $300 million in gross proceeds. Uber (UBER) has expanded a previous purchasing agreement to buy at least 35,000 vehicles for a future autonomous taxi network, while contributing an additional $200 million to reach a $500 million total investments in the company, Lucid said. Public Investment Fund affiliate Ayar Third Investment has also committed $550 million to buy convertible preferred stock. Lucid shares were down 4.3%, and Uber rose 1.2%.