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U.S. stocks dragged down by Oil, Autos as Dow posts 7th straight loss

Published 08/02/2016, 04:49 PM
Updated 08/02/2016, 04:55 PM
The Dow, NASDAQ and S&P all closed lower on Tuesday

The Dow, NASDAQ and S&P all closed lower on Tuesday

Investing.com -- U.S. stocks fell sharply on Tuesday, suffering their worst one-day session in a month, as crude futures tumbled to fresh 14-month lows and investors largely shrugged off a major stimulus package approved hours earlier by the Japanese government, placing downward pressure on equities on Wall Street.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 90.74 or 0.49% to 18,313.77, closing lower for the seventh consecutive session. At session-lows, the Dow fell as much as 153 points. Since hitting an all-time record high of 18,622.01 on July 22, the Dow has fallen back by more than 300 points over the last week and a half. Nevertheless, the Dow is still up by more than 1,100 points from its lows five weeks ago in the immediate aftermath of the surprising Brexit decision on June 24.

The NASDAQ Composite index fell by 46.47 or 0.90% to 5,137.73, snapping a five-day winning streak, while the S&P 500 Composite index dropped by 13.81 or 0.64% to 2,157.03. On the S&P 500, all 10 sectors closed in the red, as stocks in the Consumer Services, Financials and Technology industries lagged.

The top performer on the Dow was Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM), which added 0.88 or 1.02% to 86.74 during Tuesday's relief rally. Shares in ExxonMobil (NYSE:XOM) are still down by more than 5% from their levels last week, before the world's largest oil companies reported their worst quarterly profits in 17 years. Exxon shares also rebounded in spite of continued declines in crude prices, which closed below $40 a barrel for the first time since April.

The worst performer was Pfizer Inc (NYSE:PFE), which fell 0.82 or 2.20% to 36.49. While the pharmaceutical giant reported better than expected results for its second quarter on Tuesday, Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) suffered a hit due to a disappointing period among its patent-protected medicines. Though sales of Pfizer's branded drugs rose by 7% to $7.11 billion for the three-month period ending in late-June, they still fell sharply below analysts' forecasts for the quarter.

The biggest gainer on the NASDAQ was Biogen Inc (NASDAQ:BIIB), which surged 28.46 or 9.43% to 330.29. Shares in Biogen (NASDAQ:BIIB) popped in Tuesday's session after a report surfaced that the Cambridge, Massachusetts-based biotech firm could emerge as an acquisition target for a larger company such as Merck (NYSE:MRK) or Allergan (NYSE:AGN_pa). The worst performer was DISH Network Corporation (NASDAQ:DISH), which fell 4.10 or 7.67% to 49.38 after the satellite TV network announced plans to raise $2 billion in a convertible debt sale. It came following reports that the Federal Communication Commission's (FCC) AWS 3 auction on radio spectrum from local TV broadcasting networks could be delayed even further until the completion of the fourth quarter. Leading telecom companies such as AT&T Inc (NYSE:T), VZ Holding AG (SIX:VZN) and T-Mobile US Inc (NASDAQ:TMUS), which are expected to be among the top bidders in the auction, have been prohibited by regulators from holding strategic discussions. The Dish Network, which has accumulated approximately 80 MHz of radio spectrum for mobile video services, has yet to attract a partner among the aforementioned telecom companies.

Shares in both Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) and General Motors Company (NYSE:GM) both slid more than 4% after the major U.S. automakers reported disappointing sales last month. Both Ford and General Motors saw auto sales fall by more than 2% on the month, as passengers continued to show a preference for truck and SUV purchases over new cars.

On the New York Stock Exchange, declining issues outnumbered advancing ones by a 2,311-686 margin.

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