Stocks on Wall Street fell as investors rein in their expectations for a major bout of easing by the US Federal Reserve to stimulate the economy.Reports say the "shock-and-awe" approach by the Fed to help the economy has changed to one that favo
Stocks on Wall Street fell as investors rein in their expectations for a major bout of easing by the US Federal Reserve to stimulate the economy.
Reports say the "shock-and-awe" approach by the Fed to help the economy has changed to one that favours policy adjustments over time as the recovery unfolds.
Expectations are now for a programme of Treasury bond purchases worth a few hundred billion dollars over several months, in contrast to purchases of nearly $US2 trillion worth during the financial crisis.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down 43.18 points, or 0.4%, to 11,126.28, while the S&P 500 index was down 0.3% to 1182.45. Bucking the trend, the Nasdaq Composite was up 0.2% at 2503.26.
Energy stocks were among the biggest drags, after weekly oil inventory numbers showed US stockpiles of crude oil rising by five million barrels. Exxon Mobil dropped 2.1% and Chevron fell 2%. Oil futures eased to $US81.94 a barrel.
ConocoPhillips fell 1.8%, despite posting third-quarter earnings that more than doubled, buoyed by higher commodities prices and improved refining margins.
Home Depot dropped 2.5% to lead the decliners on the Dow, while materials stocks also were weak. Alcoa shed 2%. Bank of America gained 2.9% to lead the Dow, as well as a broader recovery in financial stocks.
Other markets: Europe, Asia down
European stocks closed lower, with gains by Deutsche Bank and the financial sector outweighed by the drag of basic resources.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 Index closed down 0.8% at 264.93. The UK's FTSE 100 slipped 1.1% to 5646.02, France's CAC-40 lost 1% to 3815.77 and Germany's DAX declined 0.7% to 6568.
Most Asian stocks fell as concerns that the US quantitative easing might not be as large as expected triggered a rebound in the US dollar and hurt commodities.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index dropped 1.9% to close at 23164.58, China's Shanghai Composite gave up 1.5% to finish at 2997.05, Australia's S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.9% to 4648.14, and India's Sensex lost 1.1% to 20005.37.
The benchmark indexes in Thailand and Singapore each fell 1.2%, with the SET index closing at 983.96 and the Straits Times Index ending at 3124.38.
Japan's Nikkei Stock Average climbed 0.1% to 9387.03 after a volatile session, as some exporters advanced on the dollar's gains against the yen.
Commodities: Oil, gold down
Crude-oil futures fell after a US government report showed an unexpected drop in weekly gasoline inventories.
Light, sweet crude for December delivery settled 61USc, or 0.7%, lower at $US81.94 a barrel in New York after falling as low as $US80.73 earlier in the session. Brent crude on the ICE futures exchange traded 43USc lower at $US83.23 a barrel.
Gold futures dropped as investors began thinking that a potential Fed monetary stimulus would be a more gradual affair rather than a larger injection.
The most actively traded gold contract, for December delivery, was down $US16, or 1.2%, at $US1322.60 an ounce in New York.
Currencies: Dollar up, yen down
The US dollar gained broadly after a Wall Street Journal report dashed expectations the Fed will engage in a massive programme of asset purchases to kick-start the US economy.
Even if the Fed does go ahead with another round of so-called quantitative easing, recent economic data have been better than expected, including positive surprises in September durable goods and new-home sales.
The euro was at $US1.3790 from $US1.3852 late on Tuesday. The dollar was at ¥81.56 from ¥81.50, while the euro was at ¥112.47 from ¥112.89. The UK pound was at $US1.5782 from $US1.5839. The dollar was at 0.9896 Swiss francs, from 0.9855 francs.
