US Equity Markets End Lower Amid Likely Interest Rate Cut Expectations, Increase in Industrial Production

04:27 PM EDT, 09/16/2025 (MT Newswires) -- US equity indexes were lower on Tuesday amid likely interest rate cuts by the Fed this week and an increase in industrial production.

* Industrial production increased by 0.1% in August, defying Bloomberg survey expectations of a 0.1% decline and following a revised 0.4% drop in July.

* Retail sales increased by 0.6% in August, surpassing the 0.2% rise anticipated in a Bloomberg survey and matching July's gain. Excluding motor vehicles and a 0.5% rise in gasoline station sales, core retail sales still grew 0.7% in August, up from 0.3% in July.

* October West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose $1.30 to settle at $64.60 per barrel, while November Brent crude, the global benchmark, was last seen up $1.09 to $68.53.

* Steel Dynamics (STLD) shares rose about 6.1% after the steel producer said it expects third-quarter earnings to increase both sequentially and year over year, supported by stronger profits across its three operating units.

* Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) shares fell 6.3%, marking the largest decline on the Nasdaq and S&P 500, after TD Cowen downgraded the stock to hold from buy while keeping a $14 price target, and reports surfaced that Walt Disney (DIS) , Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD), and Comcast's (CMCSA) Universal jointly filed a federal lawsuit Tuesday against Chinese AI firm MiniMax.

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