Stock Ideas 
Market Watch Stocks decline on manufacturing report
Market Watch Stocks decline on manufacturing report 
Market Watch
|
By Chris Johnson We've commented on the softness in the semiconductor sector, which has been headed south while the rest of the market has rallied. With seasonal electronic sales about to get a boost from the holiday shopping season, it's strange to see the semiconductor group in its current weakened state. |
|
| More... |
Most Popular
Login Form
| Stocks decline on manufacturing report |
| Friday, 15 February 2008 | ||||||||
|
The New York Federal Reserve's Empire State Manufacturing Survey indicated that conditions deteriorated this month. The reading fell nearly 21 points to negative 11.7 -- the first negative reading since May 2005. Analysts had forecast a decline of 6.5 percent for the February number, according to Dow Jones Newswires. Investors nervous about the state of the economy examined a handful of other economic data. The nation's central bank said Friday that industrial output showed a modest increase last month, largely on strength from utilities. The Fed said industrial production increased 0.1 percent in January, in line with December's rise and analysts' expectations. In addition, a Labor Department report found that U.S. import prices rose 1.7 percent in January, as oil prices jumped. In December, prices slipped 0.2 percent. Investors were still awaiting readings on consumer sentiment. The preliminary Reuters/University of Michigan survey on consumer sentiment for February was due in the first hour of trading. The findings can help illuminate how consumers feel about the economy. Consumers uneasy about the future can make them more reluctant to open their wallets -- an alarming prospect for Wall Street as consumer spending accounts for more than two-thirds of economic activity. A slowing economy remains foremost in investors' minds. In testimony before the Senate Banking Committee on Thursday, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke issued a sobering but not entirely unexpected prediction that economic growth in much of 2008 is likely to be "sluggish" before gathering strength later in the year. He also warned further losses were likely at banks from soured mortgages. Stocks lost more than 1 percent Thursday, a day after putting up a gain of similar magnitude. The back-and-forth days, which have become almost commonplace in recent months, illustrate the uncertainty that has gripped Wall Street since last year. In the first hour of trading, the Dow Jones industrial average fell 37.39, or 0.30 percent, to 12,339.59.
Broader stock indicators also lost ground. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 4.42, or 0.33 percent, to 1,344.44, and the Nasdaq composite index fell 9.38, or 0.40 percent, to 2,323.16. Government bond prices rose. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, fell to 3.77 percent from 3.82 percent late Thursday. The dollar was mixed against other major currencies, while gold prices rose. Overseas, Japan's Nikkei stock average finished off 0.03 percent. In afternoon trading, Britain's FTSE 100 fell 1.43 percent, Germany's DAX index fell 1.76 percent, and France's CAC-40 fell 1.75 percent. Investors Hub Newsdesk This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
|
||||||||
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|
