Wall Street declines on Fed, weak China data - NDTV

New York: Wall Street fell in early trade on Thursday, extending a sell-off that began the day before, after Chinese manufacturing unexpectedly contracted and on concern that the Federal Reserve may ease back on its stimulus program. The Dow Jones industrial average was at 15,256, down 50 points or of 0.3 per cent. It had been down 127 points in the early going following steep losses in European and Japanese markets. Minutes from the latest Fed meeting released Wednesday indicated that several policymakers are leaning toward slowing the central bank's bond-buying program. That program has been keeping interest rates low and encouraging investors to buy risky assets like stocks. The Dow is still up 16.4 per cent so far this year as hiring and the housing market pick up and as US corporations turn in record profits. Investors were also disappointed Thursday by a report that showed manufacturing in China, the worl d's No. 2 economy, unexpectedly shrank this month. China's booming economy has been a major driver of global growth in recent years and investors worry when they see signs that it's slowing down. Global stock markets fell sharply on Thursday, starting in Asia where the benchmark Nikkei index fell 7.3 per cent after Japanese government bond yields spiked and news was released about the slowdown in Chinese manufacturing. The sell-off extended to Europe where Germany's DAX index, which has been at a record high, slid 2.7 per cent. In other US stock trading, the Standard & Poor's 500 index was down 9 points to 1,646, or 0.5 per cent. The Nasdaq composite was down eight points at 3,454, or 0.2 per cent. In commodities trading, the price of crude oil slipped $1.42, or 1.5 per cent, to $92.87 a barrel. Gold rose $18, or 1.3 per cent, to $1,385.30 an ounce. The dollar fell against the euro and the yen. In US government bond trading, the yield on the 10- year Treasury note fell to 2.02 per cent to 2.04 percent. Among stocks making big moves, Ralph Lauren fell $5.37 to $182.69, a loss of 3 per cent. The apparel seller reported revenue that fell short of what financial analysts were expecting. Sluggish economic conditions and the decision to cut certain businesses reduced sales. PC maker Hewlett-Packard bucked the downward trend. The stock surged $2.95, or 14 per cent, to $24.16, after the company delivered second-quarter earnings that topped the estimates of both its own management and the analysts who influence investor perceptions. via Business - Google News http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=t&fd=R&usg=AFQjCNG30fVBhn4P-ufVOXqNbEufttSivQ&url=http://profit.ndtv.com/news/market/article-wall-street-falls-on-fed-weak-china-manufacturing-322571

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