U.S. stocks tanked today as a sharp increase in the dollar sent investors into havens such as Treasury bonds. The S&P 500 (INDEXSP:.INX) fell 1 percent to 2,105.52 at 3:43 p.m. in New York. The 30-company Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDEXDJX:.DJI) slipped 1 percent to 18,051.98, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (INDEXNASDAQ:.IXIC) lost 1.1 percent to 5,034.
The dollar rallied on the back of the inflation data on Friday and hawkish comments from Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen, warning that a rate hike is still in the cards for 2015.
The dollar was hovering at a one-month peak against a basket of major currencies and at one point gained as much as 1.38 percent, pushing for its largest daily move in almost two years.
The overall economy is gradually firming, with reports today showing business investment spending plans increasing solidly in April, consumer confidence perking up this month and house prices extending gains in March.
DATA:
Sales of new homes in the U.S. climbed 6.8 percent in April to an annual rate of 517,000, while consumer confidence in May rose to 95.4 from 94.3 in April.
Orders for durable U.S. goods fell, but the core capital-goods number, which can be viewed as a proxy for business investment, climbed 1 percent in April.
The day’s mostly upbeat economic data provided support for the dollar which helped to dull investment demand for gold.
MOVERS:
Priceline Group (NASDAQ:PCLN) slumped 1.2 percent to $1,194.35 as the travel websites operator said it will invest an additional $250 million in Chinese online travel company Ctrip.com International (NASDAQ:CTRP) to tap the fast-growing China market. ADRs of Ctrip fell 4 percent to $81.24.
Wal-Mart (NYSE:WMT) skidded 1.1 percent to $75.31. Wal-Mart auditor Ernst & Young allegedly knew of bribery allegations against the retailer in Mexico long before Wal-Mart disclosed that news. That accusation comes from pension fund advisor CtW Investment Group.
Charter Communications (NASDAQ:CHTR) fluctuated and was last up 3 percent at $180.69. The company agreed to buy its much larger competitor Time Warner Cable (NYSE:TWC) for $56.7 billion, in a deal that would transform the company into one of America’s largest cable and broadband operators and to better compete against market leader Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA). Time Warner Cable jumped 7.3 percent to $183.68.
AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) inched up 0.3 percent to 691.42 after the retailer of automotive replacement parts said third-quarter same-store sales rose 2.3 percent, while earnings per share climbed 13 percent to $9.57.
In technology stocks, LivePerson (NASDAQ:LPSN) surged 12.4 percent to $10.05 after an Israeli website reported software provider Nice Systems was in talks to acquire the chat software firm.
EMC (NYSE:EMC) fell 2.1 percent to $26.28 after the IT service provider announced a deal to acquire privately-held cloud software and services company Virtustream in a cash deal valued at $1.2 billion.
First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) tumbled 6.8 percent to $51.35 after media reports said RBC Capital analysts downgraded the stock to underperform.
Cerulean Pharma (NASDAQ:CERU) surrendered 1.6 percent to $5.98 after jumping to as high as $6.60 after the biotech company said the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted orphan drug designation to its CRLX101 drug, a treatment for ovarian cancer.
COMMODITIES:
Gold for June delivery dropped 1.4 percent to settle at $1,186.90 an ounce on Comex.
July crude fell 2.8 percent to settle at $58.03 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.