U.S. stocks decline amid data, falling oil prices

Xinhua

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U.S. stocks extended losses amid generally downbeat economic data on Monday, as plunging oil prices hit Wall Street sentiment.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average decreased 91.66 points, or 0. 52 percent, to 17,598.20. The S&P 500 lost 5.80 points, or 0.28 percent, to 2,098.04. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 12.90 points, or 0.25 percent, to 5,115.38.

U.S. consumers' personal income continues rising while spending growth slowed in June, the latest sign of Americans' cautious consumption attitude, the Commerce Department announced on Monday.

In June, U.S. personal income increased 68.1 billion U.S. dollars, or 0.4 percent, largely in line with market consensus. Personal consumption expenditures increased 25.9 billion dollars, or 0.2 percent, its smallest gain in four months.

In a separate report, the Department reported that U.S. construction spending during June 2015 was estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,064.6 billion dollars, 0.1 percent above the revised May estimate, missing market expectations of 0.6 percent.

Meanwhile, the July manufacturing Purchasing Manager's Index ( PMI) registered 52.7 percent, a decrease of 0.8 percentage point over the June reading of 53.5 percent, said the Institute Supply Management (ISM) in its monthly survey. A reading above 50 indicates growth, while a reading below 50 suggests contraction.

"A drop in the ISM employment index from 55.5 to 52.7 and price paid index from 49.5 to 44 weighed on the headline reading. The drop in the ISM prices paid index along with slower wage and salary growth sparked a rally in Treasuries as odds of September tightening slipped," said Jay Morelock, an economist at FTN Financial, in a note.

Dampening investor sentiment, oil prices plummeted over 4 percent on Monday as market expected crude production from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) hit record high in July.

The West Texas Intermediate for September delivery moved down 1. 95 dollars to settle at 45.17 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while Brent crude for September delivery decreased 2.69 dollars to close at 49.52 dollars a barrel on the London ICE Future Exchange.

In response, the energy sector slumped 2.01 percent as the greatest decliner in the S&P 500 on Monday.

Overseas, Greece's stocks, which reopened on Monday after a five-week closure, plummeted as much as 23 percent in early trading before reversing part of losses to end 16 percent lower.

In Asia, Chinese shares dropped on Monday following last week's decline as investors worried about the wild swing of the market, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index tumbling 1.1 percent.

The CBOE Volatility Index, often referred to as Wall Street's fear gauge, rose 3.63 percent to end at 12.56 Monday.

In other markets, the U.S. dollar rose against most major currencies as market expected an interest-rate hike from the Federal Reserve by yearend.

In late New York trading, the euro moved down to 1.0949 dollars from 1.0980 dollars in the previous session. The dollar bought 123. 95 Japanese yen, higher than 123.75 yen of the previous session.

Gold futures on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange settled lower on Monday as dollar steadied.

The most active gold contract for December delivery fell 5.7 dollars, or 0.52 percent, to settle at 1,089.40 dollars per ounce.