(By Salman - iStockAnalyst Writer)US stocks plunged on Tuesday as as talk of a possible second stimulus package raised concerns about the economic recovery. A steep drop in crude oil prices also spooked investors.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 161.27 points or 1.94% to finish at 8,163.60. The S&P 500 slipped 17.69 points or 1.97% to end at 881.036. The Nasdaq Composite lost 41.23 points or 2.31% to 1,746.17.
Stocks came under pressure after Laura D'Andrea Tyson, a member of the panel advising President Barack Obama said Tuesday that the United States should consider a possible second round of fiscal stimulus to further bolster the economy after the $787 billion rescue package launched in February.
Among Dow components, shares of chemical giant DuPont (NYSE:
DD) tumbled $1.29 or 5.09% to $24.04.
General Electric plunged 47 cents or 4.09% to close at $11.01.
American Express (NYSE:
AXP) slumped 89 cents or 3.78% to $22.63.
Shares of airplane maker Boeing Co. (NYSE:
BA) plummeted $1.52 or 3.75% to $39.04.On Tuesday, Boeing agreed to pay at least $580m for the South Carolina unit of Vought Aircraft Industries that makes chiefly composite sections for the 787,in order to strengthen the global supply chain.
Energy stocks finished with significant losses. Exxon Mobil (NYSE:
XOM) lost $1.54 or 2.26% to $66.56. Chevron Corp. (NYSE:
CVX) slid $1.44 or 2.25% to $62.70.
Technology research firm Gartner Inc expects global spending on information technology to decline 6 percent in 2009, sharper than an earlier forecast of 3.8 percent. Software giant Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ:
MSFT) lost 67 cents or 2.89% to $22.53. Hewlett Packard (NYSE:
HPQ) subtracted 89 cents or 2.36% to $36.84.
Shares of Kraft foods (NYSE:
KFT) retreated 69 cents or 2.61% to $25.75.
Late on Monday, credit-card company Discover Financial Services (NYSE:
DFS) announced that it’s offering $500 million of shares. The company said in a statement that the proceeds will be used for general corporate purposes and to pay back funds to the U.S. Treasury's Troubled Asset Relief Program. Shares of the company sank $1.13 or 10.76% to end at $9.37.
Early on Tuesday, railroad car manufacturer Greenbrier Cos. Inc. (NYSE:
GBX) reported that it swung to a fiscal third-quarter net loss of $50.5 million, or $3 a share, from a profit of $8.1 million, or 49 cents a share. Total revenue tumbled 36% to $244.4 million. Shares of Greenbrier finished at $6.31, down 61 cents or 8.82%.
U.S. auto parts maker Lear Corp. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Tuesday, a day after setting out plans to restructure its $3.6 billion debt burden under a proposed deal with creditors.
European stocks settled down. The UK FTSE retreated 7.91 points or 0.19% to 4,187. The German DAX and French CAC decreased 1.15% and 1.09% respectively.
Asian stocks finished with modest losses. The Nikkei 225 fell 33.08 points or 0.34% to 9,647.79. The Hang Seng index of Hong Kong dropped 117.14 points or 0.65% to end at 17,862.27.
NYMEX crude oil for August delivery declined $1.12 or 1.7% to settle at $62.93 a barrel.
Disclosure: Author does not own any of the stocks discussed here.
