NST Online Business Times : latest
NST Online Business Times : latest |
| US stocks easier in choppy trading Posted: 16 Aug 2013 06:51 PM PDT NEW YORK: US stocks on Friday closed out a choppy day of trade on a negative note following a mixed batch of economic data and a big jump in bond yields. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 30.72 (0.20 per cent) to 15,081.47. The broad-based S&P 500 declined 5.49 (0.32 per cent) to 1,655.83 while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index slipped 3.34 (0.09 per cent) to 3,602.78. All three indices veered in and out of positive territory throughout the day, steadying somewhat after sharp declines Thursday.
New housing starts data showed spending up last month to an annualized pace of 896,000 units, up from 846,000 in June. But analysts were disappointed by a consumer confidence report that showed weaker sentiment in August than July. "The economic news was obviously mixed," said Peter Cardillo of Rockwell Capital Management. Computer maker Dell rose 0.8 per cent after a Delaware court cleared a September 12 shareholder vote on the proposal led by founder Michael Dell to take the company private, rebuffing an effort by Carl Icahn to challenge the proposal. Dell meanwhile reported a 72 per cent drop in second-quarter profits due to falling PC sales. Applied Materials, which provides equipment and software to high-tech sectors, rose 1.9 per cent after promoting president Gary Dickerson to chief executive. Company earnings came in one cent shy of the expected 19 cents per share. Nordstrom became the latest retailer to disappoint investors, dropping 4.9 per cent after besting expectations for second-quarter profit, but trimming its full-year business forecast. The department store operator now expects a total sales increase of 3-4 per cent for the year compared to 4-6 per cent in its previous outlook. Pandora added 2.5 per cent after Goldman Sachs upgraded the stock to "buy." Goldman cited higher advertising revenues per listener hour and said fears about competition from Apple and others are already priced in, Barron's reported. Food company General Mills fell 2.3 per cent after Jefferies downgraded the stock to "underperform," flagging fears the company's cuts to its advertising and media spending will result in lower sales. -- AFP |
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