Hewlett-Packard Co.(NYSE: HPQ) fell $1.17 or 3.16% to $35.81. Chipmaker Intel Corp.(NASDAQ: INTC) fell 16 cents or 1.16% to $13.63. Adobe Systems Inc. slumped $1.66 or 6.99% to $22.10 after it was downgraded to “underperform” from “market perform” by analysts at Friedman, Billings, Ramsey & Co. Yahoo Inc. (NASDAQ: YHOO) named Carol Bartz, ex-CEO of design-software maker Autodesk Inc. (NASQAD: ADSK) as new Chief Executive on Tuesday. She will replace Yahoo co-founder Jerry Yang. Shares of Yahoo rose over 2% in evening trade.
Lexmark International Inc. (NYSE: LXK) sank $3.72 or 13.12% to $24.63. Early on Tuesday, printer maker warned fourth-quarter operating results will be weaker than previous guidance due to worsening economic downturn. The company now expects a 17% year-over-year drop in fourth-quarter revenue and expects to report earnings in the range of 19 to 24 cents a share.
Liz Claiborne Inc. (NYSE: LIZ) tumbled 23 cents or 7.74% to $2.74 after apparel designer on Tuesday lowered its fourth-quarter earnings guidance and announced that it amended as well as extended its credit facility.
In a speech at The London School of Economics on Tuesday, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke said "For almost a year and a half the global financial system has been under extraordinary stress -stress that has now decisively spilled over to the global economy more broadly." He added that "Fiscal actions are unlikely to promote a lasting recovery unless they are accompanied by strong measures to further stabilize and strengthen the financial system. More capital injections and guarantees may become necessary to ensure stability and the normalization of credit markets.”
Meanwhile, President-elect Barack Obama urged lawmakers to quickly release $350 billion of the bailout fund that the regulators urgently require to fix the financial system.
A release by Census Bureau showed U.S. trade deficit declined 29% to $40.4 billion in December. Imports fell by a record 12% while exports fell 5.8% in the month, the report said.
Elsewhere, Japan's Ministry of Finance said that the second largest economy's current account surplus contracted for the ninth straight month in November by 65.9% from the year ago period as exports shrank 26.5%.
European stocks finished with losses. The U.K. FTSE slumped 27.04 points or 0.61% to 4,399.15. The German DAX and French CAC slipped 1.75% and 1.47% respectively.
Asian stocks finished deep in red. The Nikkei 225 lost 422.89 points or 4.79% to close at 8,413.91. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index dropped 302.95 points or 2.17% to 13,668.05.
NYMEX Crude Oil for February delivery climbed 27 cents, or 0.7%, to settle at $37.86 a barrel.
Disclosure: Author does not own any of the stocks discussed here.
