US markets slip on concern over debt ceiling

26 Sep 2013 Evaluate

The US markets fell on Wednesday, with the S&P 500 index recording its longest decline since December, as a possible government shutdown overrode better-than-forecast economic reports. The Senate voted 100-0 to pass a stopgap spending measure, with Democrats planning to get rid of language from the House version that would remove funding of the 2010 Affordable Care Act. Separately, Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew told legislators that he’ll run out of options to avoid hitting or surpassing the debt limit by October 17 or sooner. On the economy front, orders for durable goods bounced back in August as demand for autos surged, but bookings in other key segments of the US manufacturing sector were mixed. The US Commerce Department stated that orders for durable goods rose 0.1% last month to a seasonally adjusted $224.9 billion after a revised 8.1% drop in July.

Besides, sales of new US homes rose 7.9% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 421,000 in August, rebounding after a large drop in July, as three of four regions posted gains. The US Department of Commerce revised July’s rate to 390,000. The supply of new homes in the US market fell to five months at the current sales pace from 5.2 months in July. Separately, household wealth climbed in the second quarter while household debt barely budged, continuing a seesaw pattern as outstanding mortgage obligations declined while auto and student debt mounted. Household net worth grew by $1.3 trillion, or 1.8%, to $74.82 trillion, owing to gains in prices that boosted house values by about $525 million as well as a boost of nearly $300 billion from gains in the stock market and mutual funds.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 61.33 points or 0.40 percent to 15,273.30, the S&P 500 was down 4.65 points or 0.27 percent to 1,692.77, while the Nasdaq slipped 7.16 points or 0.19 percent to 3,761.10.

Indian ADRs closed mostly in green on Wednesday; Dr. Reddy’s Lab was up by 0.81%, Tata Motors was up 0.39% and Infosys was up 0.26%. On the other hand, HDFC Bank was down 1.03% and ICICI Bank was down by 0.74%.

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