US stocks turn down
Wednesday, 22 August 2007
NEW YORK, Aug 21 (Reuters): US stocks turned lower in choppy Tuesday trade as anxious investors waited for the outcome of a key meeting between Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, Secretary Treasury Henry Paulson and Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd.
Earlier talk that the meeting might lead to a hoped-for rate cut faded ahead of the opening bell, said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Avalon Partners.
"The markets are anxious to hear from the group of three - the trinity - that are going to meet today," Cardillo said.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) were down 51.4 points at 13,070, with 22 of its 30 stocks trading in the red.
The S& P 500 (SPX) was 4.66 points off to 1,440.89.
The Nasdaq composite (RIXF) fell 6.48 points to 2,502.11.
Volume at the New York Stock Exchange came to 209 million shares, with declining stocks running just ahead of advancers. At the Nasdaq, 248 million shares were exchanged, and decliners edged just ahead of advancing stocks.
Poised to open higher, US stocks opened lower in the immediate aftermath of televised comments by Paulson, who told CNBC that the economy remains strong, but conceded that "what's going on in capital markets will take a penalty."
"We are reassured the economy is strong but it's a long stretch to make the correlation to the markets in the short to median term. At the end of the day, it's not earnings and dividends; it's supply and demand and perceptions that move markets, said Elliot Spar, option/market strategist at Stifel Nicolaus & Co., in a Tuesday note.
Earlier talk that the meeting might lead to a hoped-for rate cut faded ahead of the opening bell, said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Avalon Partners.
"The markets are anxious to hear from the group of three - the trinity - that are going to meet today," Cardillo said.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) were down 51.4 points at 13,070, with 22 of its 30 stocks trading in the red.
The S& P 500 (SPX) was 4.66 points off to 1,440.89.
The Nasdaq composite (RIXF) fell 6.48 points to 2,502.11.
Volume at the New York Stock Exchange came to 209 million shares, with declining stocks running just ahead of advancers. At the Nasdaq, 248 million shares were exchanged, and decliners edged just ahead of advancing stocks.
Poised to open higher, US stocks opened lower in the immediate aftermath of televised comments by Paulson, who told CNBC that the economy remains strong, but conceded that "what's going on in capital markets will take a penalty."
"We are reassured the economy is strong but it's a long stretch to make the correlation to the markets in the short to median term. At the end of the day, it's not earnings and dividends; it's supply and demand and perceptions that move markets, said Elliot Spar, option/market strategist at Stifel Nicolaus & Co., in a Tuesday note.