Materials lead US stocks lower as commodities dip

[March 29, 2012]  LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Falling commodity prices punished materials and energy companies Wednesday, pushing Wall Street's major stock indexes to a lower close.

Crude oil lost nearly $2 to $105 a barrel, hurting energy stocks. Peabody Energy fell 3.4 percent, Chevron 1.1 percent and Exxon 0.9 percent.

Materials fell the most among the 10 industry groups in the Standard & Poor's 500 index. Aluminum producer Alcoa Inc. fell 2.6 percent. The only stock in the Dow Jones industrial average that lost more was heavy equipment maker Caterpillar Inc., which dropped 3.5 percent.

All three major indexes lost a half-percent. The Dow closed down 71.52 points at 13,126.21. The broader S&P 500 index lost 6.98 to 1,405.54. The Nasdaq composite index, heavy with technology stocks, fell 15.39 to 3,104.96.

One bright spot was the strong debut of Annie's Inc., a company that sells prepared organic foods. In its first day of trading on the New York Stock Exchange, Annie's leapt 89 percent to $35.92. The company, based in Berkeley, Calif., had priced its shares at $19 late Tuesday.

The broad declines came in spite of a government report that orders for durable goods rose strongly last month, a sign that businesses continue to invest.

The Commerce Department said before the market opened that orders for durable goods, which are defined as products expected to last at least three years, rose 2.2 percent in February. Orders for machinery, computers, autos and aircraft led the rise.

The positive economic news reduced demand for U.S. Treasury debt. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 2.21 percent from 2.19 percent before the report. As stocks fell, traders again sought the safety of Treasurys and the yield fell back to 2.20 percent.

Health insurance companies declined more than the broader market as the U.S. Supreme Court wrapped up oral arguments in a challenge to President Barack Obama's massive health care overhaul. Aetna Inc. and Health Net Inc. lost 1 percent; Catalyst Health Solutions fell 1.4 percent.

Insurers lost ground because of tough questions from key justices, a signal to some observers that they might strike down the law. Dave Shove, an analyst with BMO Capital Markets, said most people expect the law to help big health insurers by extending coverage to millions more Americans.

"Stocks are following what most people think, which is that these exchanges were going to be a fairly good thing for insurers and bring a bunch of the uninsured in," Shove said, referring to the health policy exchanges where uninsured people would be able to buy coverage.

Shove said his firm has a contrarian view, namely that the law "is much less disruptive to the marketplace" than many people expect.

Many investors are holding back on major trades as they await news later this week on Europe's progress in resolving its debt crisis, said Andrew Goldberg, global market strategist with J.P. Morgan Funds.

"Investors know Europe is still in crisis" and fear a steeper drop if markets are spooked by a meeting of European finance ministers that begins Thursday and Spain's budget announcement on Friday, Goldberg said.

European markets closed sharply lower. London's FTSE 100 dropped 1 percent; benchmark indexes in France and Germany dropped 1.1 percent.

Futures for crude, natural gas, heating oil and gasoline all fell Wednesday, with crude leading the way. Oil prices fell after a report suggesting a larger-than-expected jump in U.S. crude supplies, a sign that demand remains weak.

If consumers get a break on what they have to pay for energy, that could provide a bump for the U.S. economy.

In corporate news:

• Sealy Corp. rose 6.4 percent after the mattress maker reported a surprise profit in the first quarter of 1 cent per share. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had expected a loss of 2 cents per share.

• Medco Health Solutions Inc. jumped 3.2 percent after the company said its $29.1 billion merger with Express Scripts Inc. could close as early as next week. Express Scripts rose 1.3 percent.

• JoS A. Bank Clothiers Inc. plunged 8.6 percent after the company said its first quarter began weakly because the mild winter weather crimped demand.

[Associated Press; By DANIEL WAGNER]

Daniel Wagner can be reached at http://twitter.com/wagnerreports.

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