Get 40% Off
🤯 This Tech Portfolio is up 29% YTD! Join Now to Get April’s Top PicksGet The Picks – Just 99 USD

U.S. Stocks End Lower On Weak Factory Data

Published 12/03/2012, 04:20 PM
Updated 07/09/2023, 06:31 AM
Stocks fell Monday, snapping a two-week run higher for the major market indices, as a gauge of U.S. factory activity fell. Ongoing worries of efforts to resolve the standoff between the White House and Congress over scheduled tax hikes and spending cuts in early 2013 also weighed on sentiment. All 10 sectors in the S&P 500 finished in the red, with technology stocks the final holdout to slide underwater.

Commodities ended higher.

The Institute for Supply Management's U.S. factory index fell over two points to a 49.5 reading in November, well under the median 51.4 call of analysts in a Bloomberg survey while also taking the measure of manufacturing activity under the dividing line between expansion and contraction. The reading was the lowest level seen in three years and more than likely represented a fear of the partisan divide in Washington.

China's PMI
The U.S. manufacturing data overshadowed a rise for a comparative measure of Chinese factory activity, with the HSBC Purchasing Managers' Index rising a full point to a 50.5 reading in November. It was the first time in over a year that the Chinese PMI rose.

Stocks also appear to have run into some technical obstacles with the S&P 500 briefly moving past its 50-day moving average at about 1,420, only to fall back below the key resistance point.

Stocks were pointing to a higher opening this morning after Greece said it would buy back as much as 10 billion euro in outstanding debt and Spain made an official request for European Union bank bailout funds from the permanent European Stability Mechanism fund. Also helping contribute to early momentum was the Commerce Department reporting a 1.4% rise in October construction spending, topping the 0.4% analysts were forecasting.

Commodities ended higher with West Texas Intermediate crude oil for January delivery rising 18 cents to $89.09 per barrel. January natural gas was up 3 cents to $3.591 per 1 million BTU. February gold added 8.4 cents to settle at $1,721.10 per ounce while March silver rose 48 cents to $33.759 per ounce. March copper was up 0.85 cents to $3.66 per pound.

Here's Where The U.S. Markets Stood At Day's End
  • Dow Jones Industrials down 59.98 (-0.46%) to 12,965.60
  • S&P 500 down 6.72 (-0.47%) to 1,409.46
  • Nasdaq Composite down 8.04 (-0.27%) to 3,002.20
GLOBAL SENTIMENT
  • Hang Seng Index down 1.19%
  • Shanghai China Composite Index down 1.03%
  • FTSE 100 Index up 0.08%
UPSIDE MOVERS
  • (+) CLNT, CEO Jianhua Wu and his wife spend nearly $613,000 to purchase 157,966 shares of the company's stock. Average price was $3.88 a share.
  • (+) SQNS, China Mobile selects company to power devices for TB-LTE commercial trial network expansion in 13 Chinese cities.
  • (+) DECK, Sterne Agee upgrade to Buy, citing improving sales and margins in the back half of 2013. Price target is $65.
  • (+) SVU, Reportedly nearing deal with Cerberus Capital Management LP, according to the Wall Street Journal.
DOWNSIDE MOVERS
  • (-) SCMP, U.S. Food and Drug Administration extends its review of the company's Amitiza drug candidate to treat opioid-induced constipation in patients for another three months.
  • (-) HMA, "60 Minutes" segment aired last night asserts the hospital company pressured doctors to admit patients from the emergency room to fill hospital beds. HMA denied the allegations.
  • (-) LDK, Slashes its FY12 revenue outlook following weak Q3 sales performance.
  • (-) WEX, Names David Gagne as new CEO. Gagne previously worked as board consultant, leading an outside project team to evaluate the company's products, sales channel, competitors and business strategy.
© 2012 MidnightTrader, Inc. All rights reserved.

Latest comments

Risk Disclosure: Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.
© 2007-2024 - Fusion Media Limited. All Rights Reserved.