The leading benchmarks turned back after a moderately bright start as investors fretted that the European Central Bank might tone down its quantitative easing program.
A report on Bloomberg suggest that the bank, which is currently purchasing €80bn of bonds a month might taper off its purchases ahead of the official end-date of the program, which is March 2017.
The decision could presage an upturn in interest rates, which will not do many favors to those with high credit card debt, though that might account for why banks were among the winners today.
The S&P 500 gave back nearly 11 points at 2,150, while the Dow Jones average shed 85 points at 18,168.
The mid-cap S&P 400 tumbled eight points to 1,534.
Lunchtime
Stocks remain weaker on balance, having experienced an up-and-down morning.
The major indices opened higher, but soon turned lower and stayed there for the duration of the morning.
The S&P 500 was down 10 points at 2,154 while its baby brother, the mid-cap focused S&P 400 was off nine points at 1,533.
The small-cap measure, the Russell 2,000 index, looked like it would defy the trend but it too was in the red in lunchtime trading, down four points at 1,242.
There was no patently obvious reason for the reversal, and it may just have been a case of investors holding fire until this week’s jobs report for September.
Meanwhile, the gold bugs are getting it in the neck with the price of gold bullion below US$1,300 an ounce for the first time in 15 weeks to around US$1,275.
There was some good news on the corporate front for airline stocks, with monthly air traffic statistics providing a lift to United Continental Holdings Inc (NYSE:UAL), up 0.8%; American Airlines Group Inc (NYSE:AAL), up 0.2%; and Delta Air Lines Inc (NYSE:SAL), up 0.5%.
Turning to the small caps, Summit Therapeutics PLC (NASDAQ:SMMT) still sat atop the tree after its blockbuster licensing deal with Sarepta Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:SRPT).
Investors were also tuning into Spanish Broadcasting System Inc (NASDAQ:SBSA), which was up 22% at 4.75p after announcing yesterday the addition of a full video channel line-up to its LaMusica music streaming app.
Open
US stocks have turned lower after a mixed to firmer, as investors fail to tune out lingering concerns about the financial health of Deutsche Bank.
The benchmark S&P 500 was four points lower at 2,157 while the Dow Jones average was 33 points weaker at 18,220.
Mid-caps, as measured by the S&P 400 index – down three points at 1,539 – are faring no better, leaving it to the Russell 2,000 index, which tracks the performance of small caps, to provide some cheer, up two points at 1,248.
On the NYSE, Seadrill Ltd (NYSE:SDRL) was the best performer after its billionaire chairman, John Fredriksen, said he was willing to lend the company up to US$1.2bn to help it restructure its crippling debt mountain.
The shares shot up 21% to US$2.60 on the news.
Dual-listed UK biotech Summit Therapeutics PLC (LON:SUMM, NASDAQ@SMMT) was comfortably the biggest riser on Nasdaq after it inked a deal with Sarepta Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:SRPT).
Read Sarepta licenses DMD treatment from Summit
The pair will collaborate on Summit’s potentially breakthrough treatment for Duchenne muscular dystrophy.
Sector peer Trinity Biotech PLC (NASDAQ:TRIB) was having a tougher time of it, with the shares halving after it withdrew its Meritas Troponin-I Test and Meritas Point-of-Care Analyser device application with the Food and Drug Administration.
Preview
Global stock markets are on the advance and US stocks look set to grudgingly join in party.
Spread betting quotes point to the Dow Jones opening around three points higher at 18,255 and the broader-based S&P 500 kicking off half a point so firmer at 2,161.4.
Matters European were occupying investors’ minds in pre-market trading, with concerns about the viability of Germany’s Deutsche Bank persisting while in the UK sterling has hit its lowest level against the greenback since the dark days of the Thatcher administration – 1985 – after Prime Minister Theresa May said at the weekend that the UK would begin the formal process of leaving the European Union by the end of March 2017.
On the domestic scene, traders were tucking in to Darden Restaurants Inc (NYSE:DRI) in screen-based trading, pushing the shares up 4.3% after the operator of the Olive Garden chain of eateries reported forecast-beating earnings.
Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL), the company behind Google, is expected to unveil new smartphones today and a speaker system that will compete with Amazon’s Echo speaker.