Categories: U.S. Investing

U.S. Stocks Retreat Again after Worst Week Since 2012

U.S. Stocks Retreat Again after Worst Week Since 2012 (Bloomberg)

U.S. markets fell further today to continue its descent from late last week. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index slipped 0.5 percent Monday to 1,781.56 after tumbling 2.6 percent last week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 41.23 points today, or 0.3 percent, to 15,837.88. Both indices closed at the lowest levels since mid-December. About 8 billion shares changed hands on U.S. exchanges, roughly 30 percent more than the three-month average. The S&P 500 last week sank the most since June 2012 as a sell-off in developing-nation currencies spurred volatiliy in global markets. The dip drove the index below its average price in the past 50 days for the first time since October. The S&P 500 today extended its 2014 retreat to 3.6 percent. The Dow is down 4.5 percent for the year. Visa Inc., Microsoft Corp. and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. slumped more than 1.7 percent, leading declines among large companies. Google Inc. and Facebook Inc. paced losses in technology stocks. However, Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) jumped 5.9 percent after announcing a stock buyback and forecasting earnings above analysts’ estimates.

Paul Dykewicz

Paul Dykewicz is the editor of StockInvestor.com and the editorial director of Eagle Financial Publications in Washington, D.C. He writes and edits for the website, as well as edits investment newsletters, time-sensitive trading alerts and other reports published by Eagle. He also is an accomplished, award-winning journalist who has written for Dow Jones, USA Today and other publications, as well as served as business editor of a daily newspaper in Baltimore. In addition, Paul is the author of the inspirational book, "Holy Smokes! Golden Guidance from Notre Dame's Championship Chaplain." He received his MBA in finance from Johns Hopkins University, where he was a two-time president of the school's Finance Club. In addition, Paul has a bachelor's degree from the University of Michigan and a master's degree in journalism from Michigan State University. Outside of work, Paul volunteers with a faith-based organization to assist the poor in Southeast Washington, D.C., to learn personal finance skills to lift themselves out of debt.