Stocks are lingering in negative territory in early afternoon trading on Tuesday, as traders have moved capital out of the markets following news of a consumer confidence gauge falling to a ten-month low. The major averages are all firmly in the red, further offsetting last week's strong gains.
Following a wobbly start, equities came under pressure after the Conference Board reported a much bigger than expected drop in consumer confidence in the month of February, with consumers expressing concerns about business conditions and the embattled job market.
On the housing front, Standard and Poor's revealed that home prices continued to show an annual rate of decline in the month of December, although the pace of the drop in home prices continued to slow.
In earnings news, home improvement retailer Home Depot Inc. (HD) and Target Corp. (TGT) both reported fourth-quarter earnings and revenues that topped estimates. Fellow retail giant Macy's (M) also reported earnings that were better-than-expected, although its revenues came in just short of estimates.
In other news, Toyota Motor Sales USA President Jim Lentz is answering questions before a congressional panel on Capitol Hill regarding the firm's recent vehicle recalls that have led to a number of consumer deaths.
The major averages have all seen choppy movement in recent dealing, lingering near session lows. The Dow is currently down 85.02 points or 0.8 percent at 10,298.36, the Nasdaq is down 32.81 points or 1.5 percent at 2,209.22 and the S&P 500 is down 12.77 points or 1.2 percent at 1,095.24.
Sector News
Gold and steel stocks are showing substantial weakness in early afternoon trading, with the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index and the NYSE Arca Steel Index down by 3.4 percent and 3.5 percent, respectively, offsetting recent gains.
Within the steel sector, shares of Commercial Metals Co. (CMC) are moving notably lower, falling by 3.8 percent. With the drop, the stock is falling from the more than one-month closing high set yesterday.
Semiconductor, computer hardware and networking stocks are also under considerable pressure, reflecting the day's weakness in the tech sector.
Healthcare provider stocks also remain lower, with the Morgan Stanley Healthcare Provider Index down by 2.2 percent. The index is being led lower by Tenet Healthcare (THC), which reported fourth quarter revenues that were short of estimates and provided a disappointing outlook.
Banking, oil service, housing and airline stocks are also seeing notable weakness, further indicative of the day's broad based selling pressure.
Stocks In The News
Brocade Communications Systems Inc. (BRCD) is posting a steep loss in early afternoon trading after the firm's full year 2010 earnings forecast came in short of analyst estimates. The stock has dropped by 23.6 percent, sinking to a ten-month intraday low.
HealthSouth Corp. (HLS) is also moving lower after the company projected full year 2010 earnings that were also below analyst expectations. The stock is currently down by 7.6 percent, backing off of yesterday's one-month closing high.
Despite the pullback in the markets, Radian Group Inc. (RDN) is seeing a particularly strong outing after reporting a substantially narrower fourth quarter loss that beat Wall Street estimates. The stock has gained 11.7 percent, breaking out to its best intraday price in over five months in earlier dealing.
In Focus: Consumer Confidence, Case/Schiller Home Price Index
As mentioned above, the Conference Board reported that the consumer confidence index fell to 46.0 in February from an upwardly revised 56.5 in January. Economists had been expecting the index to edge down to 55.0 from the 55.9 originally reported for the previous month.
Meanwhile, Standard & Poor's revealed that its S&P/Case-Shiller 20-City Composite Home Price Index fell at an annual rate of 3.1 percent in December compared to a 5.3 percent decrease in November. The annual rate of decline in home prices came in line with economist estimates.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance on Tuesday. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose by 1.2 percent, while Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 Index fell by 0.5 percent.
Meanwhile, the major European markets closed notably lower. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index fell by 0.7 percent, while the French CAC 40 Index and the German DAX Index declined by 1.3 percent and 1.5 percent, respectively.
In the bond markets, treasuries remain higher following the weak consumer sentiment data. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note is trading at 3.725 percent, posting a loss of 7.4 basis points.
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June 12, 2026 17:14 ET Major central bank action was the focus this week in economic news. The European Central Bank became the first major central bank to move in response to the rising inflationary pressures in the backdrop of the conflict in the Middle East. In North America, the U.S. inflation and trade data as well as Canada’s central bank decision gained attention. The Chinese trade data was the main news in Asia.