Blue chip stocks on Wall Street ended lower for the fourth day in five as reports of a new round of "stress tests" for the banking sector put the skids under financial shares.However, the broader indexes remained in positive territory as investo
Blue chip stocks on Wall Street ended lower for the fourth day in five as reports of a new round of "stress tests" for the banking sector put the skids under financial shares.
However, the broader indexes remained in positive territory as investors favoured retailers that had reported strong profits.
Financial stocks slumped after the Wall Street Journal reported that the US Federal Reserve would require all 19 banks that underwent stress tests during the height of the financial crisis to undergo another review.
Bank of America fell 2.7%, JP Morgan Chase 1.1% and Wells Fargo 1.2%. By contrast, Target rose 2.1% after third-quarter earnings rose 23%, beating analysts' forecasts. BJ's Wholesale Club added 1.4% after reporting a 32% earnings jump and raising its full-year earnings forecast.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 15.62 points, or 0.1%, to 11,007.88 at the close (NZ time). The S&P 500 index was up less than a point at 1178.59 while the Nasdaq Composite also gained marginally to 2476.01.
Other markets: Europe up, Asia down
European stocks rose in cautious trade as investors awaited the outcome of Ireland's meeting with European Union and International Monetary Fund officials.
Irish Finance Minister Brian Lenihan said "intensive engagement" will begin on Thursday as the country grapples with its debt problems and ailing banks.
Ireland's ISEQ index rose 1.5% to close at 2691.89, while Bank of Ireland gained more than 2% in Dublin.
The Stoxx Europe 600 index ended up 0.5% at 267.31. The UK's FTSE 100 index added 0.2% to 5692.56, France's CAC-40 index closed 0.8% higher at 3792.35 and Germany's DAX rose 0.6% to 6700.07.
Chinese stocks extended their heavy losses on continued worries that Beijing may unveil more measures to tame restrain prices.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index declined 2% to 23214.46, its sixth loss in seven sessions and its biggest one-day drop since late June. China's Shanghai Composite shed 1.9% to 2838.86, adding to Tuesday's 4% slide. It closed at its lowest level since October 11.
A weakened yen pushed Japanese exporters higher, as the Nikkei Stock Average edged up 0.1% to 9811.66.
Markets in Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia and India were closed for a public holiday.
Commodities: Oil steady, gold up
Crude oil futures are down slightly despite a surprise drop in US oil and gasoline inventories. Light, sweet crude for December delivery was down 25USc at $US82.05 a barrel in New York, rebounding from a two-week low of $US81.18 hit earlier in the session.
Brent crude on the ICE futures exchange traded 10USc higher at $US84.83 a barrel.
Gold futures rose slightly as a steady US dollar and continued speculation about Ireland's debt situation left traders searching for direction.
The most actively traded contract, for December delivery, was up $US3, or 0.2% at $US1341.40 an ounce in New York Mercantile Exchange after three consecutive days of steep declines.
Currencies: Euro up, yen down
The dollar's rise against the euro ran out of steam as domestic housing data showed the US economy was still not out of the woods.
The euro’s decline is tied to the sovereign-debt crisis in Ireland. Meanwhile, US housing starts fell 11.7% in October to an annual rate of 519,000, the lowest since 477,000 in April 2009. Economists had expected a small drop to 600,000.
Even so, the euro continues to trade at seven-week lows against the dollar.
The euro was at $US1.3548 from $US1.3489 late on Tuesday. The dollar was at ¥83.18 from ¥83.28, while the euro was at ¥112.67 from ¥112.36.
The UK pound was at $US1.5925 from $US1.5887 and the dollar was at 0.9894 Swiss franc from 0.9961 franc.
