Stocks Close Lower, Giving Up Early Gains

Posted by Unknown on Tuesday, June 24, 2014

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Business Day |Markets Are Mixed After Recent Highs

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Market were mixed on Wall Street on Tuesday, suggesting investors continued to search for direction following a sharp rally that took indexes to records last week.

In early trading the Dow Jones industrial average fell 0.04 percent and the Standard & Poorâ€™s 500-stock index was down 0.09 percent. The Nasdaq composite index rose 0.19 percent.

Single-family home prices rose less than expected in April, the S.&P./Case-Shiller survey found. The composite index of 20 metropolitan areas gained 0.2 percent in April on a seasonally adjusted basis. A Reuters poll of economists forecast a gain of 0.8 percent following gains of 1.2 percent in March.

Data on consumer confidence and home sales was expected later Tuesday. Confidence was expected to be rated at 83.5 in June, little changed from 83 in May, while new home sales were seen rising modestly in May.

Equities had a quiet session on Monday, with trading volume light and moves so slight that the S.&P. 500 had one of its narrowest intraday trading ranges ever, according to MKM Partners. That came after a six-day rally on the S.&P. that ended Friday, its longest streak since mid-April.

While Wall Streetâ€™s trend upward was still viewed as intact, investors looked for fresh catalysts to justify more robust gains, and recent economic data has been mixed.

Micron Technology late Monday reported third-quarter results and a revenue outlook that both exceeded analystsâ€™ expectations. The stock, which is up 43.7 percent this year and more than tripled over 2013, rose 1.6 percent.

Abbott Laboratories agreed to buy the Russian drugmaker Veropharm for up to $495 million.

Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals soared, rising 39 percent after the company said a combination of drugs designed to treat cystic fibrosis had succeeded in improving lung function in a pair of closely watched late-stage clinical trials.

Walgreen stock fell 2.4 percent after disappointing third-quarter results.

Bloomberg reported that Apple suppliers would begin producing larger versions of the iPhone in China next month. The stock rose 0.4 percent.

Investors continued to assess geopolitical tensions in Iraq and Ukraine. German business sentiment weakened more than expected in June as concern grew among companies in Europeâ€™s largest economy that tensions in the regions would hurt their business.

Britainâ€™s top share index, blue-chip FTSE 100 index, was down 0.3 percent on signs of economic weakness in the region and tensions in Iraq, with investors shifting focus to the upcoming earnings season.

Earlier in Asia, the majority of markets edged ahead after a sluggish start, and the MSCIâ€™s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.3 percent. Japanâ€™s Nikkei added a slender 0.05 percent.