U.S. stocks slump as pricing data sparks Fed uncertainty; Dow down 0.73%

U.S. stocks slump as pricing data sparks Fed uncertainty; Dow down 0.73%

Submitted by caseyb23 on Thu, 08/15/2013 - 03:56

U.S. stocks slump as pricing data sparks Fed uncertainty; Dow down 0.73%

Investing.com – U.S. stocks fell on Wednesday after wholesale pricing data missed expectations and added to uncertainty as to when the Federal Reserve will begin to scale back stimulus programs.

At the close of U.S. trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average finished down 0.73%, the S&P 500 index fell 0.52%, while the Nasdaq Composite index fell 0.41%.

The Department of Labor reported that the U.S. producer price index came in flat last month, missing expectations for a 0.3% increase after a 0.8% increase in June.

The core producer price index eased up 0.1% in July, missing forecasts for a 0.2% increase.

The report dampened expectations that U.S. recovery is strong enough for the Federal Reserve to begin tapering its USD85 billion-a-month asset-purchasing program at least in September when it holds its next monetary policy meeting.

Bond purchases tend to keep stocks elevated by keeping borrowing costs low.

Despite the soft producer price data stocks fell among sentiments that even if the Fed holds off on tapering at its September meeting, such a decision could likely come in December.

Elsewhere, St. Louis Fed President James Bullard said the Fed needs to see more economic indicators before it begins to tapering, which erased earlier losses though gains were short lived, as markets concluded that be it September or December, the days of Federal Reserve support for stock prices are numbered.

Trading volume was light.

Leading Dow Jones Industrial Average performers included Bank of America, up 0.62%, Alcoa, up 0.37%, and Microsoft, up 0.34%.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average's worst performers included Home Depot, down 2.53%, Johnson & Johnson, down 2.48%, and Boeing, down 1.98%.

European indices, meanwhile, finished largely higher.

After the close of European trade, the EURO STOXX 50 rose 0.34%, France's CAC 40 rose 0.53%, while Germany's DAX 30 finished up 0.27%. Meanwhile, in the U.K. the FTSE 100 finished down 0.37%.

On Wednesday, the U.S. is to release official data on producer price inflation.

On Thursday, the U.S. will release data on consumer inflation, jobless claims, industrial production and manufacturing data from the New York and Philadelphia Federal Reserve branches.