Dow’s 440-point intraday drop erases all of 2018 gains–and then some

The Dow Jones Industrial Average sharp tumble in Monday trade has helped to erase its year-to-date gain, pushing the blue-chip indicator negative for 2018. The Dow was recently off about 434 points, or 1.8%, at 24,510, for a decline in the first three months of the year of about 0.8%. Any close above 24,719.22, the average’s close for 2017, according to FactSet data, would push it into positive territory. The S&P 500 index, meanwhile, was off 1.9% at 2,699, while the Nasdaq Composite Index was 2.4% lower at 7,301. All three benchmarks were being weighed by selling in technology shares, amid a data scandal tied to how Facebook Inc. has managed user information during the 2016 presidential campaign and election. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq are both positive for the year, with the S&P 500 up 1% so far this year and the Nasdaq boasting a return of 5.8%.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

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From:: Stock Market News

U.S. oil prices give back nearly all of last week’s gains

U.S. oil futures fell Monday, giving back nearly all of last week’s gain as prices tracked a drop in the stock market. Analysts said, however, that the potential for supply disruptions amid tensions between Saudi Arabia and Iran limited losses for oil, along with sliding crude production in Venezuela. April West Texas Intermediate crude fell 28 cents, or 0.5%, to settle at $62.06 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It had gained 0.5%, or 30 cents, a barrel last week after posting a rise of 1.9% on Friday.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

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From:: Stock Market News

GE’s stock falls to erase all of March’s gains

Shares of General Electric Co. dropped 2.1% in afternoon trade, to give back everything it gained, and then some, during it sharp bounce earlier this month. After closing at $14.02 on March 1, which was the lowest close since July 6, 2010, the stock rallied as much as 7.7% to a five-week closing high of $15.10 on March 12. The stock was last at $14.01, putting it on track for the lowest close in over 7 1/2 years. GE’s stock selloff comes during a broad market selloff, in which the Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbled 465 points with all 30 components losing ground. GE’s stock has shed 53% over the past 12 months, while the Dow has gained 17%.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

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From:: Stock Market News

Real Estate Services Giant Being Acquired

A title insurance giant that has been a fixture on the American real estate landscape since the 1800s has agreed to be acquired by a larger peer.

Maco Stewart, along with legislator William H. Stewart and other family members, purchased the Gulf City Abstract Co. in 1893.

The firm, which was located in Galveston, Texas, was the beginning of Stewart Title Co., now operating from Houston and claiming the No. 3 spot among title companies.


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From:: Financing

Stock-market selling relatively orderly according to one gauge of panic, despite Dow’s 480-point tumble

The Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbled more than 480 points at its lows, heading for its steepest drop since Feb. 8, but selling is relatively calm, according to one measure of market internals. The so-called Arms Index, a volume-weighted breadth measure that usually rises above 1.000 when stock market falls, as sellers of declining stocks tend to be more aggressive than buyers of advancing stocks, rose to just 1.327 for the NYSE. Some market technicians feel a rise above 2.000 suggests panic-like selling. The number of declining stocks outnumbered advancers at 2,524 to 359, or by a 7.0-to-1 margin, at last check. Most recently, the Dow was off 400 points, or 1.6%, at 24,551. It was down by as many as 482 points. The S&P 500 index was down 1.7% at 2,705, while the Nasdaq Composite Index was trading 2.3% lower at 7,310. Stock benchmarks were under pressure on Monday on the heels of a data scandal tied to how Facebook Inc. has managed user information during the 2016 presidential campaign.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

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From:: Stock Market News

Gold prices finish higher to erase Friday’s losses

Gold prices finished higher on Monday, erasing their losses from Friday. Sharp declines in benchmark U.S. stock indexes and a weaker dollar boosted investment demand for the precious metal, even as the U.S. Federal Reserve is expected to announce an interest-rate hike on Wednesday. April gold fell $5.50, or 0.4%, to settle at $1,317.80 an ounce.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

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From:: Stock Market News

Leveraged ‘FANG’ ETNs see massive moves amid Facebook selloff

A pair of exchange-traded products that offer leveraged exposure to a group of popular large-capitalization internet and technology companies saw heavy trading and sharp moves on Monday, as Facebook’s stock suffered one of its worst days in years. The BMO REX MicroSectors FANG+ Index 3X Leveraged ETN sank 11% and traded on heavier-than-average volume. The exchange-traded note offers triple-leveraged exposure to an index of 10 stocks, returning 300% of that index’s daily move. The index is geared toward the so-called ‘FAANG’ group of stocks, which refers to Facebook , Amazon , Apple , Netflix , and Google-parent Alphabet . All those stocks were lower on Monday, dropping at least 2%, with Alphabet down 3.7%. The biggest losses were in Facebook, however; the social-media giant sank 6.5% as it came under heavy criticism for how it has managed user data. The BMO REX MicroSectors FANG+ Index -3X Inverse Leveraged ETN rallied 10% on Monday; the note is designed to rise when the underlying components fall. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.7% while the S&P 500 lost 1.8% and the Nasdaq Composite Index was down 2.3%.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

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From:: Stock Market News

All 30 Dow stocks fall amid Facebook-driven selloff

U.S. stocks fell broadly on Monday, with major indexes poised for their biggest one-day drop in more than a month. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 1.8%, on track for its biggest one-day percentage drop since Feb. 8. The day’s losses were widespread; not only were all 11 of the primary S&P 500 sectors down on the day, but so were all 30 Dow components. Leading the decline, on a percentage basis, was Caterpillar Inc. , which fell 3.3%. Among other big decliners, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lost 2.7% while Johnson & Johnson was off 2.2%. For the broad market, the day’s losses were driven by Facebook Inc. , which sank 7%, on track for its worst session in years. The stock came under heavy selling pressure over how it manages third-party access to its users’ information, after saying a firm with ties to the 2016 Trump campaign improperly kept member data for years despite saying it had destroyed those records. While Facebook isn’t a Dow component, the decline pressured technology stocks broadly; Cisco Systems fell 2.2% while Microsoft Corp. lost 2.7%. Apple Inc. fell 2.1%. Relatively speaking, the best performer on the day was Coca-Cola Co., which fell less than 0.1%. Separately, the S&P 500 fell 1.8% and the Nasdaq Composite Index was down 2.4%.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

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From:: Stock Market News

Fannie Addresses Layered Risk High DTIs

A growing share of loans with high debt-to-income ratios and other high risk factors has recently concerned mortgage insurers and prompted a policy change at Fannie Mae.

The trend began last summer as Washington-based Fannie started allowing low-down payment mortgages to borrowers who had DTI ratio’s as high as 50 percent.

Mortgage insurance companies began to notice that too many borrowers were being approved who exhibited additional risks factors such as weak credit scores and inadequate reserves.


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From:: Financing

Dow’s more than 300-point intraday drop erases all of 2018 gains

The Dow Jones Industrial Average sharp drop in Monday afternoon trade has helped to erase its year-to-date gain, pushing the blue-chip indicator negative for 2018. The Dow was recently off about 320 points, or 1.3%, at 24,627, for a decline in the first three months of the year of about 0.4%. Any close above 24,719.22, the average’s close for 2017, according to FactSet data, would push it into positive territory. The S&P 500 index, meanwhile, was off 1.5% at 2,710, while the Nasdaq Composite Index was 2.1% lower at 7,320. All three benchmarks were being weighed by selling in technology shares, amid a data scandal tied to how Facebook Inc. has managed user information during the 2016 presidential campaign and election. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq are both positive for the year, with the S&P 500 up 1.4% so far this year and the Nasdaq boasting a return of 6.1%.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

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From:: Stock Market News