United States stocks struggled for direction early on Wednesday, as investors digested a disappointing reading on retail sales and a number of corporate earnings reports.
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The Dow Jones industrial average fell 157.14 points, or 0.9 percent, to close at 16,924.75. The S&P 500 lost 9.45 points, or 0.5% to 1994.24.
The Nasdaq composite declined 42.03 points, or 0.9 per cent, to 4,796.61. Concerns about a Chinese slowdown in August helped spark a selloff in stocks around the world, and sharp swings continued through September. The Nasdaq Composite fell 13.76, or 0.3%, to 4782.85.
The subdued activity was highlighted by below-average trading volume as fewer than 700 million shares changed hands at the NYSE floor.
The third-quarter earnings season, which picks up steam this week, will give investors another view on economic growth.
Among other big decliners, shares of Boeing Co dropped 4.3 percent to United States dollars 134.22.
The S&P 500 index is down 35.04 points, or 1.7 percent.
“It is positive to see volatility subside and that’s primarily because none of the big issues in the market are overwhelming at the moment”.
Ryder System (NYSE:R) tumbled 8.7% to US$69.10 after it revised its earnings outlook after the markets closed yesterday.
Adjusted earnings per share of US$1.49 topped market expectations of US$1.43, but the shares were down 0.8% at US$95.24, despite the company unveiling a monster US$10bn share repurchase program.
On the commodity markets Tuesday, the December gold contract was at US$1,159.90 an ounce, up $4 from Friday’s close but down $4.60 from Monday. That lines him up with fellow Governor Lael Brainard, who made the case on Monday for patience, and diverges from the majority of Federal Open Market Committee members including Yellen. Twitter Inc.(NYSE:TWTR) fell 6.8% after Re/Code reported the company is planning to make layoffs this week.
The dollar was on the back foot against the main currencies, losing 0.31% and 0.48% against the yen and the euro respectively.
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Treasury yields fell lower following the data, with the 10-year temporarily sinking beneath 2% the first time since October 5. Oil prices regained a few of the lost ground as the USA count of oil and gas drilling rigs slipped to a five-year low. Needless to say, the rise in oil prices supported energy stocks greatly in recent sessions.
