Share

Wall St falls on Greek debt deal worries

New York - US stocks fell on Tuesday as fiscal cliff worries overshadowed encouraging US economic data and investors shrugged off Greece's revised bailout deal.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 89.24 points (0.69%) at 12,878.13.

The broad-market S&P 500 lost 7.35 (0.52%) at 1,398.94, while the Nasdaq Composite slid 8.99 (0.30%) to 2,967.79.

Investors remained focused on Washington where Democratic Senator Harry Reid said little progress had been made in budget negotiations, Briefing.com analysts said.

"After the Senate majority leader's comments, the S&P 500 fell to session lows from its flat line," and declined further in a final round of selling pressure.

European markets closed higher after the Greek deal, which allows Athens to trim its debt load through bond buybacks and reduced rates, and promises new rescue loan installments of €43.7bn through March.

But critics said Greece's creditors, the European Union and the International Monetary Fund, had again "kicked the can down the road" with the new arrangement.

"We think that Greece will eventually need a much larger debt relief, but any agreement on this is unlikely to happen before German elections next fall," said Tullia Bucco of UniCredit Research.

Trade was heavy in food manufacturer Ralcorp Holdings, which surged 26.4% after ConAgra Foods set a deal to buy it for $6.8 billion, including assuming Ralcorp debt. ConAgra gained 4.7%.

The Dow's biggest laggards were Hewlett-Packard, down 3.1%, American Express, off almost two percent and United Health, 1.6%.

Intel led the nine gainers, up 0.6%.

Casino operator Las Vegas Sands jumped 5.2% after it announced a special dividend to be paid before year-end, aiming to avoid higher dividend taxes that will likely result from deficit-slashing negotiations under way in Washington.

On the Nasdaq, Research in Motion, the BlackBerry maker, dived 10.4% despite an upgrade from CIBC World Markets.

Apple shares fell 0.8% after Monday's 3.2% gain.

Bond prices rose slightly. The 10-year US Treasury yield dropped to 1.65% from 1.66% on Monday, and the 30-year fell to 2.79% from 2.80%.

Bond prices and yields move inversely.

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Rand - Dollar
19.07
-0.8%
Rand - Pound
24.01
-0.5%
Rand - Euro
20.55
-0.4%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.37
-0.1%
Rand - Yen
0.13
-0.8%
Platinum
890.97
-0.7%
Palladium
988.99
-1.3%
Gold
2,196.11
+0.1%
Silver
24.43
-0.9%
Brent Crude
86.09
-0.2%
Top 40
67,857
+0.3%
All Share
74,039
+0.2%
Resource 10
56,172
+0.9%
Industrial 25
103,559
+0.3%
Financial 15
16,472
-0.3%
All JSE data delayed by at least 15 minutes Iress logo
Company Snapshot
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE
Government tenders

Find public sector tender opportunities in South Africa here.

Government tenders
This portal provides access to information on all tenders made by all public sector organisations in all spheres of government.
Browse tenders