US close: Markets retreat as Powell addresses Congress

Wall Street indices finished in the redon Tuesday, after nerves kicked in as new Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell delivered his first congressional testimony.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended the session down 1.16% at 25,410.03, the S&P 500 lost 1.27% to 2,744.28, and the Nasdaq 100 was 1.27% lower at 6,900.35.

"The FOMC will continue to strike a balance between avoiding an overheated economy and bringing PCE price inflation to 2% on a sustained basis," Powell said in remarks released by the House Financial Service committee earlier in the day.

“At the moment the Fed are projecting three rate hikes this year while financial markets are currently pricing in around 80bp of rate hikes,” said James Knightley at ING.

“Given our above consensus 3% GDP growth forecast for 2018 and the potential for inflation to rise more quickly than many in the market anticipate (wages, dollar weakness, medical care costs, cell phone data distortions, commodity prices, we are now forecasting four rate rises this year.

On the data front, US consumer confidence jumped to 130.8 from 124.3, beating consensus forecasts of 126.5 to hit its highest reading since November 2000 as, according to the Conference Board's consumer confidence index, the drop in the stock market failed to upset consumers.

Elsewhere, new orders for American-made capital goods dropped for a second consecutive month in January, while shipments barely increased, pointing to a slowdown in spending on equipment following the robust levels of growth seen in 2017.

The Tuesday morning report from the Commerce Department came after weak January retail sales, industrial production and home sales data, all pointing to a slowdown in economic growth for the first quarter.

In another report released by the Commerce Department, data showed a widening in the goods trade deficit in January, with the shortfall on international trade widening 3% to $74.4bn in January, while exports of goods fell $3.1bn to $133.9bn and goods imports slipped $900m to $208.3bn.

The Commerce Department also reported a 0.7% increase in wholesale inventories in January, as retail inventories rose 0.8%

Lastly, the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller National Home Price Index rose 6.3% in December, up from the 6.1% seen in November, in line with analysts' estimates of a 6.35% year-over-year increase, as an all-time low inventory helped to push prices higher at the end of 2017.

"The rise in home prices should be causing the same nervous wonder aimed at the stock market after its recent bout of volatility," said David Blitzer, managing director and chairman of the Index Committee at S&P Dow Jones.

In corporate news, cable TV company Comcast fell 7.38% after it made a £22.1bn bid for London-listed broadcaster Sky, outbidding 21st Century Fox.

SeaWorld shares dropped 5.21% just 0.86% in early trading after the company reported a loss of £20.4bn for the fourth quarter, compared to $11.9m in the same period a year ago.

Shares in generic pharmaceuticals group Akorn tanked 38.41% after a probe into possible data breaches at the company could force it to ditch its planned $5bn takeover.

Fitbit slid 12.59% after its quarterly revenue and earnings late on Monday missed analysts' expectations, while Macy's picked up 3.54% after beating earnings estimates.

Dow Jones - Risers

Intel Corp. (INTC) $49.91 1.63%
Boeing Co. (BA) $364.45 0.32%
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $131.61 -0.30%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $178.39 -0.32%
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $232.44 -0.66%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $45.04 -0.71%
Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $141.54 -0.73%
Pfizer Inc. (PFE) $36.80 -0.78%
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $113.61 -0.86%
Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $43.62 -0.93%

Dow Jones - Fallers

Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $104.87 -4.50%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $54.72 -2.39%
Nike Inc. (NKE) $68.05 -2.33%
Dowdupont Inc. (DWDP) $72.37 -2.30%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $48.04 -2.14%
American Express Co. (AXP) $99.58 -2.03%
Home Depot Inc. (HD) $184.98 -1.85%
McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $160.66 -1.79%
Walmart Inc. (WMT) $91.52 -1.72%
Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) $77.50 -1.70%

S&P 500 - Risers

Mallinckrodt Plc Ordinary Shares (MNK) $18.66 15.26%
Tenet Healthcare Corp. (THC) $20.74 8.91%
AES Corp. (AES) $11.24 7.37%
Discovery Communications Inc. Class C (DISCK) $24.75 3.86%
Macy's Inc. (M) $28.40 3.46%
Discovery Communications Inc. Class A (DISCA) $26.04 3.46%
Microchip Technology Inc. (MCHP) $88.55 2.51%
Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (CMG) $319.15 2.33%
E*TRADE Financial Corp. (ETFC) $53.11 2.21%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $49.91 1.63%

S&P 500 - Fallers

AutoZone Inc. (AZO) $654.47 -11.07%
Comcast Corp. (CMCSA) $36.66 -7.38%
Perrigo Company plc (PRGO) $81.98 -7.13%
O'Reilly Automotive Inc. (ORLY) $238.58 -6.43%
Mosaic Company (MOS) $26.82 -4.86%
Chesapeake Energy Corp. (CHK) $3.06 -4.67%
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $104.87 -4.50%
Advance Auto Parts (AAP) $109.80 -4.40%
TripAdvisor Inc. (TRIP) $39.73 -4.15%
Kimco Realty Corp. (KIM) $14.85 -4.13%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Microchip Technology Inc. (MCHP) $88.55 2.51%
Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance Inc. (ULTA) $203.06 2.08%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $49.91 1.63%
Express Scripts Holding Co (ESRX) $78.64 1.29%
Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $48.58 1.25%
Idexx Laboratories Inc. (IDXX) $187.98 1.02%
Shire Plc Ads (SHPG) $127.19 0.69%
DENTSPLY Sirona Inc. (XRAY) $57.33 0.49%
Workday, Inc. (WDAY) $128.21 0.32%
Paypal Holdings Inc (PYPL) $79.46 0.14%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Comcast Corp. (CMCSA) $36.66 -7.38%
O'Reilly Automotive Inc. (ORLY) $238.58 -6.43%
Mercadolibre Inc. (MELI) $375.44 -4.36%
NetEase Inc. Ads (NTES) $296.31 -3.97%
JD.com, Inc. (JD) $47.04 -3.61%
Symantec Corp. (SYMC) $26.32 -3.34%
Twenty-First Century Fox Inc Class B (FOX) $37.14 -3.28%
Twenty-First Century Fox Inc Class A (FOXA) $37.63 -3.04%
Ross Stores Inc. (ROST) $77.54 -3.01%
Dish Network Corp. (DISH) $43.64 -2.91%