(MENAFN- ProactiveInvestors) Wall Street fell on the last day of trade for the month as investors considered mixed economic data and some weakness in the dollar.
The S&P 500 (INDEXSP:.INX) sagged 1.1 percent to 2083 at 3:41 p.m. in New York. The 30-company Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDEXDJX:.DJI) slipped 1.2 percent to 17818 while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (INDEXNASDAQ:.IXIC) dropped 1.7 percent to 4936.
Today’s economic data came in above expectations and pointed to improvement in the labor market and further inflation stabilization - both are key gauges of U.S.economic health that the central bank said it would use to help guide its hand as it aims to start normalizing interest rates.
The dollar traded mixed against other major currencies.
DATA:
Applications for U.S. jobless benefits declined to 262000 showing employers view a first-quarter slowdown in the economy is probably temporary.
Consumer spending climbed in March capping a lackluster first-quarter performance that was enough to keep the U.S. economy from shrinking. The consensus among economists was for spending to rise 0.5 percent.
Personal income was unchanged in March. According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis personal income stayed unchanged from the prior month at 0 percent. The consensus among economists was for income to rise 0.2 percent.
Personal consumption expenditures or PCE an inflation measure which showed consumer prices rose 0.2 percent month-over-month in line with expectations and 0.3% year-over year below the forecast of 0.4 percent. “Core” PCE which strips out the more volatile cost of food and energy rose 0.1 percent in March and rose 1.3 percent over last year.
The Chicago PMI jumped in April to a reading of 52.3 from 46.3 in March to return above the 50-mark signalling expansion. A double-digit gain in the new orders component led to the advance.
MOVERS:
() the world’s largest technology company slipped 2.7 percent to $125.46 after early adopters of the Watch complained that many key functions are disrupted by their tattoos.
ADRs of Baidu () dropped 8.6 percent to $200.24 after China's dominant Internet search engine posted its slowest quarterly revenue growth rate in almost seven years.
() fell 24 percent to $38.87 after the operator of consumer review website forecast second-quarter revenue below analysts' expectations.
Colgate-Palmolive () surrendered 1.9 percent to $67.23 after saying first-quarter sales fell 6 percent slightly missing analyst expectations. The consumer-goods company also said expects a double-digit decline in full-year earnings per share.
() tumbled 5.9 percent to $8.16 after the beauty products maker fell three cents short of Street forecasts with quarterly profit of four cents per share and revenue was also short of estimates.
(NASDAQ:MAR) sank 4.7 percent to $79.91. The hotel operator saw stronger pricing and higher occupancy during the quarter. However its current quarter guidance is short of expectations.
COMMODITIES:
Gold for June delivery on Comex sank 2.3 percent to settle at $1182.40 an ounce.
West Texas Intermediate for June delivery settled at $59.63 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange up 1.8 percent.
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