5 things you should know before the stock market opens on Wednesday, August 21

Here are five important things investors need to know at the start of the trading day:

The market rally took a breather on Tuesday as all three major indexes edged lower. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 61.56 points, or 0.15%. The S&P 500, meanwhile, slipped 0.2% to 5,597.12, while the Nasdaq Composite slipped 0.33% to 17,816.94. Tuesday’s losses ended an eight-day winning streak for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite. In fact, had the S&P 500 closed Tuesday with a positive gain, it would have been the index’s longest winning streak since 2004. Investors will turn their attention to the minutes of the Federal Reserve’s July meeting, which will be released on Wednesday. Follow the market updates live.

Goal beat Wall Street expectations for second-quarter profit and revenue, with sales rising about 3%. The retailer said customers bought more value items such as clothing. Shares rose more than 10% in premarket trading Tuesday as Target reported improvements in profit-making. However, Target maintained its previous full-year sales forecast and offered a cautious note: It expects full-year comparable sales to be at the low end of its estimated range of flat to up 2%.

Weekly mortgage refinance rates have come back down to earth after soaring last week. The Mortgage Bankers Association’s seasonally adjusted index showed that applications to refinance a home loan fell 15% from the previous week. While mortgage rates are falling and are now at 6.5%, most borrowers who already own a home have interest rates well below 5%, having fallen below 3% during the first two years of the pandemic. However, the 30-year fixed rate has fallen 32 basis points over the past four weeks and is 81 basis points lower than the same time last year.

General Motors aims to outsell its rivals in the electric pickup market. The automaker is launching an electric Sierra pickup through its premium GMC brand that it hopes will lead the way. But to achieve its goal, the new Sierra EV will have to outsell its sibling, the Chevrolet Silverado EV, as well as competition from Ford Motor, Rivian Automobiles And Teslawhich topped sales in the second quarter with its Cybertruck, Motor Intelligence reports. The electric truck market is still in its infancy, but the Sierra EV joins electric versions of the Hummer, including an SUV and a pickup truck, in GMC’s electric truck lineup.

The fast-fashion war is heating up. China-linked fashion giant Shein sued its rival Temu, accusing it of regularly stealing its designs. Shein also claimed in the lawsuit – filed in federal court in Washington, DC on Monday – that Temu loses money on every sale and commits trademark infringement to recoup the losses. Yet Shein has itself had to fend off similar copyright allegations from a number of independent artists and brands, including Levi Strauss and H&M. Temu even sued Shein last year over copyright concerns and allegations that the company forces suppliers into exclusivity agreements.

— CNBC’s Alex Harring, Melissa Repko, Diana Olick, Michael Wayland and Gabrielle Fonrouge contributed to this report.