The stock markets in the United States suffered another decline on Monday as investors continue to monitor statements from the Federal Reserve regarding its next monetary policy, particularly the schedule of tapering the quantitative easing or bond-buying program.
Today, three regional presidents of the Federal Bank, including William C. Dudley (New York), Dennis Lockhart (Atlanta), and Richard Fisher (Dallas) issued statements today. Dudley indicated that policy makers must push against headwinds because the economy of the United States has not yet shown any “meaningful pickup” in momentum, while Lockhart said the Fed should focus on creating a more dynamic economy. On the other hand, Fisher stated that the central bank’s decision in maintaining its $85 billion bond-buying program hurt its credibility.
In a telephone interview with Bloomberg, Richard Sichel, chief investment officer of Philadelphia Trust Co commented, “The more people who speak from the Fed in one day, the less clarity there is. People will be hanging at every word that’s said for more clues about our monetary policy.”
Another factor affecting the stock markets is the ongoing political debate regarding the federal budget and debt ceiling. Based on the survey conducted by Bloomberg on September 10, forty percent of global investors who participated in a poll said that they would pull out their investments in the United States of a government shutdown occurs.
U.S. Markets
- Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA)- 15,401.38 (-0.32%)
- S&P 500- 1,701.84 (-0.47%)
- NASDAQ- 3,765.29 (-0.25%)
- Russell 2000- 1,072.13 (-0.07%)
European Markets
- EURO STOXX 50 Price EUR- 2, 906.35 (-0.71%)
- FTSE 100 Index- 6,557.37 (-0.59%)
- Deutsche Borse AG German Stock Index DAX- 8,635.29 (-0.47%)
Asia Pacific Markets
- Nikkei 225- 14, 742.42 (-0.16%)
- Hong Kong Hang Seng Index- 23, 371.54 (-0.56%)
- Shanghai Shenzhen CSI 300 Index- 2, 472.29 (+1.64%)
Stocks In Focus
The shares of Apple Inc. (NYSE:AAPL) jumbled as much as 5.3% to $492.08 share after the company revealed that it sold 9 million units of the iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C, higher than the 5 million units sold during its opening-weekend sale last year. The stock ended the trading day today at around $490.75 per share.
BlackBerry Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) (TSE:BB) reached an agreement with a consortium of investors led by Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd (TSE:FFH) (OTCMKTS:FRFHF), the firm controlled by Prem Watsa to take the company private for $4.7 billion or $9 per share. Prior to the announcement of the deal, the stock declined by 5% to $8.23 a share. The trading for the stock was halted briefly and regained some of its value at $8.92 per share by the end of the day.
The stock price of Pandora Media Inc (NYSE:P) declined by more than 10% to $24.26 per share after Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) said that more than 11 million users are listening music using its iTunes Radio since its launching. Analysts at Stifel Nicolaus said the effect of iTunes Radio on Pandora is still unclear and they remain optimistic regarding the long-term prospects of the company under its new CEO Brian McAndrews.
Walgreen Company (NYSE:WAG) gained 1.28% to $56.23 per share after analysts at Morgan Stanley upgrading their rating for the stock from equal weight to overweight with a price target of $70 per share.
