US markets closed mostly lower on Tuesday

16 Mar 2016 Evaluate

The US markets closed mostly lower on Tuesday, weighed down by a rout in oil prices and a string of lackluster economic data, ahead of the Federal Reserve’s important decision on interest rates. On the economy front, sales at US retailers dipped in February after an even bigger drop in January, a sign that consumers haven’t ramped up spending despite steady job creation. Retail sales fell a seasonally adjusted 0.1% last month and sales for January were revised sharply lower to show a 0.4% decline instead of a 0.2% gain. Retail sales account for about 25% of consumer spending, the main engine of US economic growth. The lackluster pace of sales in the first two months could mean another tepid increase in gross domestic product in the first quarter. A measure used to help determine US gross domestic product, known as core retail sales, was unchanged in February. Core sales strip out gas, autos, building materials and grocery stores. Core sales have risen a scant 1.1% in the past three months.

Meanwhile, US wholesale prices fell 0.2% in February to mark the fifth decline in seven months, largely because of lower gasoline and food prices. The price of goods dropped 0.6% last month. Wholesale gas prices sank 15% and food declined 0.3%. The cost of services was flat. Over the past year overall producer prices are flat in unadjusted terms. Excluding the volatile categories of food, energy and trade, core prices edged up 0.1% in February. Core wholesale prices have risen 0.9% in the same span, the biggest 12-month increase since last summer. While some pressure appears to be building, inflation is still very low.

On the other hand, a reading of New York-area manufacturing conditions improved markedly in March, a sign the factory sector could be stabilizing after months of weakness. The Empire State general business conditions index surged to a reading of positive 0.6 in March from negative 16.6 in February, marking the first positive reading since July. The new orders rose 21 points to 9.6. The shipment index shot up 25 points to 13.9. The six-month outlook climbed 11 points to 25.5 in March. Confidence among home builders held steady in March, even as another issued a call for more housing construction. The National Association of Home Builders’ March sentiment index was unchanged at 58, a level that points to what NAHB calls slow but steady progress. The index touched a 10-year high in the fall, but slipped after that.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 22.40 points or 0.13 percent to 17,251.53, the Nasdaq was down 21.61 points or 0.45 percent to 4,728.67 while, the S&P 500 lost 3.71 points or 0.18 percent to 2,015.93.

The Indian ADRs closed in red; Dr. Reddy’s Lab was down 2.03%, HDFC Bank was down 0.77%, Tata Motors was up 0.71%, Infosys was down by 0.27% and ICICI Bank was down 0.19%.

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