Stocks gave up early gains and closed lower, a downbeat end to the market’s first losing month since February. The S&P 500 ended with a loss of 0.2%, breaking a four-day winning streak. The Dow fell 168 points, or 0.5%. The Nasdaq edged up 0.1%. Treasury yields fell. The government reported that the measure of inflation that’s closely tracked by the Federal Reserve remained low last month. That’s the latest sign that price increases are cooling. Investors are hoping the Fed may be close to done raising interest rates. Discount retailer Dollar General sank 12.2% after cutting its profit forecast for the year.
A sharp drop for Wall Street capped a day of declines around the world Tuesday after discouraging data on China raised worries about the global economy. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
Wall Street rallied Tuesday after a round of reports suggested the economy is in better shape than feared. The S&P 500 rose 1.1% to resume an upward climb that had carried it earlier this month to its highest level in more than a year. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 212 points, or 0.6%, while the Nasdaq composite gained 1.6%. (Image: AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
Wall Street Loses Ground Again
Wall Street racked up more losses Friday, as worries mounted that the Federal Reserve and other central banks are willing to bring on a recession if that’s what it takes to crush inflation. The S&P 500 fell 1.1%, its third straight drop. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.8% and the Nasdaq composite lost 1%. The major indexes marked their second straight weekly loss.
The lineups of three of the 11 groups that make up the benchmark S&P 500 index are being reordered as of Monday. Twenty companies in the index, including famous names like Facebook, Alphabet and Netflix, will find a new home.
Nielsen replaces Sprint Nextel, which was dropped as more than 50% of its shares are no longer expected to be available to the public following an acquisition. Nielsen has a market cap of $12.7 billion, above the minimum $4 billion required to be on the index, which many feel is a solid reflection of the health of the U.S. economy and a proxy for the strength of the stock market.
Exclusives
Dow Falls 241, Nasdaq Drops 65
Stocks fell broadly Friday on fresh signs that Europe’s debt problems and the U.S. economy continue to languish.
Volatile Day On Wall St. Ends On Upswing
A mixed bag of positive and negative economic indicators left investors struggling between buy and sell strategies. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 143 points, or 1.3%, to 11,154. It had been down as many as 45 points.
The Dow rose 50.03 points, or 0.4%, to close at 12,220.59. It gained 362 points for the week, the most since a 512-point jump during the week ending July 9. The S&P 500 rose 4.14, or 0.3% to 1,313.80. The Nasdaq rose 6.64 points, or 0.2%, to 2,743.06. All three stock indexes gained more than 2% for the week, helping them erase losses following the March 11 earthquake that hit Japan.
Earnings growth has been strong across U.S. companies, which have benefited from higher revenue overseas. The government also said fewer people applied for unemployment benefits last week, evidence that layoffs are slowing.
