U.S. Stocks Tick Down On Global Growth Concerns

U.S. stocks closed lower, unable to hold onto a mid-day bounce as traders digested the recent stream of economic data. Stocks started off the day on a bad foot, posting losses as market participants weighed jobless claims and housing data that were better than expectations against an unexpected contraction of Chinese manufacturing activity.

U.S. Jobs
Stateside, data released pre-bell showed that the number of people who applied last week for unemployment benefits fell by 23,000 to a seasonally adjusted 340,000. Economists polled by MarketWatch expected new claims to decline to 343,000 from a revised 363,000 in the prior week.

News on the housing front was good as well. Single-family home sales for April weighed in at 454,000, +2.3%, trumping analyst expectations of 430,000. That was the second best showing for new home sales since the beginning of the recession. In addition, the FHFA housing price index showed that March home prices climbed 1.3%.

On a down note, HSBC reported that the flash version of its Purchasing Managers' Index for May fell to a seven-month low of 49.6, down from April's final reading of 50.4. Analysts had forecast the PMI would remain at 50.4. This data hit the U.S. markets in pre-bell trading and set futures sharply lower.

Asia
Overseas, Japanese equities tumbled, suffering their biggest one-day loss in more than two years. The other Asian indexes European markets finished lower.

In commodities, gold rallied, boosted by a declining U.S. dollar, relative the Yen. Gold for June delivery added 1.8%, to settle at $1,391.80 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. This was gold's highest close in a week. Oil futures added just a few cents to close at $94.25 a barrel.

Here's Where The Markets Stood At Day's End

• Dow Jones Industrial Average down 12.67 (-0.08%) to 15,294.50
• S&P 500 down 4.84 (-0.29%) to 1,650.51
• Nasdaq Composite Index down 3.88 (-0.11%) to 3,459.42

• Nikkei 225 Index down 7.32%.
• Hang Seng Index down 2.54%.
• Shanghai China Composite Index down 1.15%.
• FTSE 100 down 2.4%.
• DAX down 2.64%.
• CAC 40 down 2.57%.

• NYSE Energy Sector Index (^NYE) down 57.88 (-0.43%) at 13,480.08
• NYSE Financial Sector Index (^NYK) down 66.41 (-1.13%) to 5,827.61
• NYSE Healthcare Sector Index (^NYP) down 51.82 (-0.55%) to 9,343.39

• (+) LPS, Stock jumps to new 52-week zenith of $33.40 amid media reports that the company is in talks with Fidelity National Financial (FNF) and Thomas H. Lee Partners, which are interested in acquiring Lender Processing. The deal is supposedly worth about $2.9 billion and would value Lender Processing shares at around $33 per share.
• (+) RUE, Issue surges to new 52-week high of $41.98 after company reported that it had signed a deal under which Apax Partners will purchase all outstanding RUE shares for $42 per share in cash, a transaction valued at $1.1 billion.
• (+) FRX, Shares rise after the company says Howard Solomon will retire as CEO and president effective December 31, 2013.

• (-) AERL, Shares tumble after gaming company reported Q1 net income declined 17% to $15.3 million, or $0.36 per share compared to income of $18.4 million, or $0.43 per share for Q1 2012. The company maintains its non-GAAP income guidance for the year ended December31, 2013 of $60 million to $75 million.
• (-) TCL, Stock plunges to new 52-week low of $6.92--the sixth consecutive day the stock is lower with a total loss of 18% since May 16th. On May 15, the company said it would apply to the SEC to de-list its ADRs at the end of the month due to the lack of volume and liquidity. The de-listing of Tata's ADRs was encouraged by a new Indian rule that requires all listed private companies to have at least a 25% public shareholding by the end of June. The stock is expected to be removed from the NYSE on or around June 10.
• (-) NSPR, Released results from its six-month trial into its MGuard Embolic Protection Stent that showed a lower mortality rate than in patients in a control group.