IMF data pulls Dow down by 270 points – New York Report
WALL Street yesterday ended sharply lower, with major indexes dipping more than 1.5 per cent in heavy trading, as weak data out of Germany raised concerns about the strength of global growth ahead of the start of earnings season.
The International Monetary Fund cut its global economic growth forecasts for the third time this year, suggesting the environment remains difficult for companies, especially ones with multinational exposure.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 272.52 points, or 1.6 per cent, to 16,719.39, the S&P 500 lost 29.72 points, or 1.51 per cent, to 1,935.1, ending at its lowest level since Aug. 12. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 69.60 points, or 1.56 per cent, to 4,385.20.
Joy Global fell 4.2 per cent to $51.69 while Caterpillar lost 3.4 per cent to $94.70 as the biggest faller on the Dow. Boeing lost 2.3 per cent to $123.32.
Shares of Yum Brands fell 0.5 per cent to $69.35 in extended trading after the fast food chain operator cut its full-year outlook, citing weakness in Chinese sales.
Coca-Cola was the only one of the 30 Dow components to end higher on the day, up 0.7 per cent to $43.92.
Shares of oil refinery companies such Marathon Petroleum, Valero Energy and HollyFrontier ended mixed. Valero and HollyFrontier closed up — 0.92 per cent and 0.43 per cent, respectively — but Marathon closed down 0.07 per cent at $80.82.