Reports that Citigroup and Bank of America have failed the government's stress tests offset a surprisingly strong consumer confidence report that suggests better times are ahead even if current job losses remain severe. The S&P 500 ended down 0.3 percent at 855.16. The dollar softened 1 cent to $1.3154 against the euro.
The confidence report weakened demand for Treasuries where yields were up 8 basis points for the 5-year note which ended at 1.93 percent. The Treasury auctioned $35 billion of new 5-year notes in the session, part of its herculean effort to fund government spending. The quarterly refunding announcement is tomorrow at 9:00 a.m. ET.
Commodities were little changed though hog prices continued to slide on swine flu concern. Soybeans, which had been one of the biggest gainers in April, fell back on rumors that Chinese importers are cancelling orders.
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