US stocks decline over commodity prices
US stocks decline on rising gloom over recent retreat in commodity prices.
NEW YORK (AFP) - US stocks declined Thursday on rising gloom in the wake of the recent retreat in commodity prices.
About 35 minutes into trading the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 70.35 (0.48 percent) to 14,548.24.
The broad-based S&P 500 gave up 9.56 (0.62 percent) to 1,542.45, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index sank 28.47 (0.89 percent) to 3,176.20.
The losses came on the heels of Wednesday s sharp retreat that followed weak earnings reports and dreary economic sentiment in Europe.
On Thursday, copper futures declined to a fresh 18-month low on worries about China demand, Dow Jones Newswires reported.
Markets are troubled by the "pummeling" that copper and other commodities have taken in recent days, said Briefing.com analyst Patrick O Hare.
The drop in base metals "has raised a number of flags as it pertains to the growth outlook," O Hare said. "Also, burgeoning concerns about the goings-on in China and renewed concerns about the state of the eurozone are acting as headwinds."
Several leading companies reported earnings that moved the market.
Morgan Stanley dropped 1.6 percent after a mixed earnings report that showed a big drop in fixed income and commodities sales and trading revenue.
Dow component UnitedHealth Group dipped 3.0 percent after reporting a 14.1 percent drop in year-over-year earnings. Other health care companies also fell, including Humana, which dropped 3.9 percent, and Aetna, which was down 0.9 percent.
Online merchandiser eBay sank 5.2 percent after reporting higher profits but signaling that second-quarter results would be below expectations.
Dow component Verizon jumped 3.4 percent after posting a 24.3 percent rise in year-over-year quarterly earnings. The company said it expects continued growth in free cash flow and earnings throughout 2013.
PepsiCo rose 4.1 percent despite reporting a 5 percent drop in quarterly earnings. The company expects to return $6.4 billion to shareholders in dividends and share repurchases.
Rail company Union Pacific jumped 3.2 percent after reporting an 11 percent increase in net income.
Bond prices rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury slipped to 1.69 percent from 1.70 percent late Wednesday, while the 30-year yield dropped to 2.88 percent from 2.89 percent. Bond prices move inversely to yields.
