Stocks Dip Amid Financial Sector Concerns

Wall Street slid today as downbeat news from JPMorgan Chase & Co. and other financial companies lifted the market’s anxiety about the continuing impact of the credit crisis on the economy. The Dow Jones industrials fell nearly 140 points.The latest reminder of continuing troubles for banks and brokerages came when JPMorgan said late yesterday it has incurred wider losses in its mortgage holdings so far in the third quarter than in the second quarter. The nation’s second-largest bank by assets said in a regulatory filing it lost $1.5 billion, after hedges, in its mortgage-backed securities and loans this quarter, compared to $1.1 billion in the second three months of 2008.The losses were proof to investors that the financial sector’s problems appear to be nowhere near a resolution.Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. fell after several analysts lowered their ratings and earnings estimates for the investment bank. And UBS AG, Switzerland’s largest bank, reported further losses and write-downs of $5.1 billion during the second quarter.The market’s losses were mitigated for part of the session by a drop in the price of oil — an illustration of the ongoing push-and-pull in the market between oil prices and any news about financials.Oil trading was buffeted by several factors: differing views on whether global demand is falling or rising, and word from BP PLC that it had shut down an oil pipeline that runs through Georgia as a precautionary measure due to the fighting between Georgian and Russian troops. Light, sweet crude settled down $1.44 at $113.01 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.The price of crude has fallen more than $30 from its July 11 high of $147.27, easing concerns on Wall Street about inflation — but today, the anxiety over the financial sector overwhelmed any relief about oil prices.“Some of the big bellwether financial-services companies are precipitating the correction that we’re seeing,” the chief equity market strategist at Federated Investors, Phil Orlando, said of today’s retreat by stocks. Still, he said the run-up in stocks since oil began falling last month has made occasional retrenchments not unexpected.According to preliminary calculations, the Dow fell 139.88, or 1.19%, to 11,642.47.Broader stock indicators also declined. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index fell 15.73, or 1.21%, to 1,289.59, and the Nasdaq composite index fell 9.34, or 0.38%, to 2,430.61.Bond prices rose as stocks fell and investors, once again uneasy about the financial sector, when back in search of safer investments. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, fell to 3.91% from 4.00% late yesterday.The dollar was higher against most other major currencies, while gold prices fell.A Commerce Department report showed the nation’s trade deficit shrank in June, rather than growing as expected. The trade imbalance dropped 4.1% to $56.8 billion in June from a revised May deficit of $59.2 billion, as exports rose to an all-time high. It was the smallest deficit in three months and was better than the $61.5 billion Wall Street expected.A senior technical strategist at Schaeffer’s Investment Research, Ryan Detrick, said any good news of the day was simply overshadowed by the latest concerns about the financial services sector. Banks and brokerages have taken more than $300 billion of write-downs since the credit crisis began last year.“The financial worries have just crept back in,” Mr. Detrick said. “But, given the rally we had last week, we’re still holding on if you look at the big picture. We were due for some kind of a break.”The Dow had gained 350 points over the previous two sessions.JPMorgan fell $3.90, or 9.3%, to $37.99. The stock plunged in late trading after a Ladenburg Thalman analyst, Richard X. Bove, lowered his earnings estimates for the year.Goldman Sachs declined $11.21, or 6.3%, to $166.79 after the analyst downgrades of some of its ratings.Wachovia Corp. fell $2.17, or 11.9%, to $16.04 after it announced plans to cut 600 more jobs than it previously expected as it tries to slash costs because of losses on mortgage debt. The bank also said in a quarterly regulatory filing that it has recorded an additional $500 million in legal reserves related to its settlement discussions with regulators concerning the sale of auction-rate securities.UBS fell $1.34, or 6.2%, to $20.35. The company also said it will separate its divisions such as private banking and investment banking to bolster investor confidence.Declining issues outnumbered advancers by about 2 to 1 on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume came to 957.3 million shares.The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 6.12, or 0.81%, to 744.94.Overseas, Japan’s Nikkei stock average fell 0.95%. Britain’s FTSE 100 fell 0.13%, Germany’s DAX index declined 0.36% and France’s CAC-40 fell 0.44%.

Stocks Dip Amid Financial Sector Concerns

Stocks Dip Amid Financial Sector Concerns

More from the New York Sun

Dolly Parton’s Artistry Transcends Her Legend

DOJ Says Kennedy Center May Be Demolished If Trump’s Name Not Added to the Building

In Major Victory for Trump, Darline Graham Wins South Carolina Republican Primary for Full Term in the Senate

As 11,000 Exemption Bids Pour In, City Delays Pied-à-Terre Deadline Again

Pennsylvania’s Josh Shapiro Backtracks on Data Centers and AI Growth, Threatening Keystone State’s Tech Boom

How Chatbots Are Sending Users Spiraling Into a Delusion Dubbed ‘Sycophantic AI’

Democratic Congresswoman Urges Congressional Leaders To Let Lawmakers Add Pictures Into Legislation

The Met’s Understated Madonna: A Rare Leonardo da Vinci Masterpiece Now Discreetly in Full View

More from the New York Sun

Dolly Parton’s Artistry Transcends Her Legend

DOJ Says Kennedy Center May Be Demolished If Trump’s Name Not Added to the Building

In Major Victory for Trump, Darline Graham Wins South Carolina Republican Primary for Full Term in the Senate

As 11,000 Exemption Bids Pour In, City Delays Pied-à-Terre Deadline Again

Pennsylvania’s Josh Shapiro Backtracks on Data Centers and AI Growth, Threatening Keystone State’s Tech Boom

How Chatbots Are Sending Users Spiraling Into a Delusion Dubbed ‘Sycophantic AI’

Democratic Congresswoman Urges Congressional Leaders To Let Lawmakers Add Pictures Into Legislation

The Met’s Understated Madonna: A Rare Leonardo da Vinci Masterpiece Now Discreetly in Full View