US close: Dow down 80 points on disappointing Chinese data

US stocks edged lower on Monday, as investors digested disappointing Chinese trade data and remained jittery as the earnings season was set to begin in its earnest.

Wells Fargo & Co.

$71.31

10:59 03/01/25

1.60%

$1.12

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down 80.61 points down to 17,977.04, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq closed fell 9.62 and 12.81 points respectively.

The Chinese trade surplus fell to $3.08bn in March from $60.62bn the previous month, compared to analysts’ estimates of $40.20bn.

Exports declined by 15% in March, below predictions for a 10% gain and following a 48.3% jump in February. Imports dropped 12.7% last month after a 20.5% slide in February, more than the 10% fall expected.

The General Administration of Customs said the decline was due to weak external demand, the slowdown in China’s economic growth and the fall in international commodity prices.

The earnings season, which began last week, clicks into gear on Tuesday with JP Morgan Chase & Co, Wells Fargo & Co and Johnson & Johnson due to report before the bell.

“The market reaction to the earnings season is typically a reflection of results versus expectations,” said Jasper Lawler, analyst at CMC Markets.

“Expectations have taken a beating leading into the first quarter reporting but this may be a good thing.”

However, Lawler added that lowered corporate expectations meant the market had a better chance to negotiate a potentially difficult earnings season.

“Corporations have proven very adept at lowering guidance in order to beat it,” he said.

“Even if average income does decline amongst top US companies, if lowered expectations are beaten, the market might come through the next couple of months unscathed.”

The US federal government posted a monthly budget deficit of $52.9bn in March, wider than expectations calling for a $44bn and about $16bn higher than 12 months ago.

Receipts totaled $234.2bn during the month, up 8.5% year-on-year, while total spending climbed 13.6% year-on-year, to $287.1bn.

In company news, Qualcomm Inc declined 0.62%, after The Wall Street Journal reported that the chip maker was being pressured to consider a breakup to boost its weak share price by activist investor Jana Partners LLC.

Builders FirstSource jumped 67.68% after unveiling plans to buy ProBuild.

The dollar slid 0.04% and 0.3% against the yen and the pound respectively but climbed 0.15% against the euro, while gold futures edged 0.42% lower to $1,199.50.

Oil prices rebounded slightly, with West Texas Intermediate gaining 0.6% to $51.95 a barrel, while Brent crude rose 0.2% to $57.98 a barrel.

S&P 500 - Risers
Netflix Inc. (NFLX) $474.71 +4.43%
Emerson Electric Co. (EMR) $58.40 +2.73%
Genworth Financial Inc. (GNW) $7.93 +2.65%
Intuitive Surgical Inc. (ISRG) $542.31 +2.25%
Huntington Bancshares Inc. (HBAN) $11.28 +2.08%
Hewlett-Packard Co. (HPQ) $32.75 +1.99%
Perrigo Company plc (PRGO) $202.35 +1.91%
Ameriprise Financial Inc. (AMP) $126.62 +1.68%
Under Armour Inc. Class A (UA) $85.11 +1.62%
Host Hotels & Resorts Inc. (HST) $20.25 +1.61%

S&P 500 - Fallers
Symantec Corp. (SYMC) $24.14 -5.65%
Peabody Energy Corp. (BTU) $4.84 -4.91%
Tesoro Corp. (TSO) $82.07 -4.55%
Fossil Group Inc (FOSL) $81.89 -4.07%
Valero Energy Corp. (VLO) $57.46 -3.80%
Marathon Petroleum Corporation (MPC) $97.21 -3.20%
General Electric Co. (GE) $27.64 -3.05%
Staples Inc. (SPLS) $16.23 -2.96%
Union Pacific Corp. (UNP) $108.49 -2.63%
Mylan Inc. (MYL) $68.56 -2.39%

Dow Jones I.A - Risers
JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $62.13 +0.70%
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $119.37 +0.31%
Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $107.84 +0.18%
Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $83.46 +0.13%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $41.76 +0.10%

Dow Jones I.A - Fallers
General Electric Co. (GE) $27.64 -3.05%
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $100.55 -1.48%
Visa Inc. (V) $65.61 -1.10%
Pfizer Inc. (PFE) $35.09 -0.99%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $56.73 -0.91%
United Technologies Corp. (UTX) $117.41 -0.89%
3M Co. (MMM) $165.83 -0.74%
Boeing Co. (BA) $153.24 -0.74%
Home Depot Inc. (HD) $114.39 -0.74%
Nike Inc. (NKE) $99.27 -0.70%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers
Netflix Inc. (NFLX) $474.71 +4.43%
Intuitive Surgical Inc. (ISRG) $542.31 +2.25%
Vimpelcom Ltd Ads (VIP) $5.79 +1.58%
Facebook Inc. (FB) $83.03 +1.21%
Illumina Inc. (ILMN) $190.35 +1.16%
Sba Communications Corp. (SBAC) $118.71 +0.88%
Priceline Group Inc (PCLN) $1,200.01 +0.88%
Whole Foods Market Inc. (WFM) $51.92 +0.75%
TripAdvisor Inc. (TRIP) $83.53 +0.72%
Broadcom Corp. (BRCM) $44.55 +0.72%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers
Symantec Corp. (SYMC) $24.14 -5.65%
Staples Inc. (SPLS) $16.23 -2.96%
Mylan Inc. (MYL) $68.56 -2.39%
Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. (CHKP) $82.91 -2.37%
CH Robinson Worldwide Inc (CHRW) $70.39 -2.32%
Dish Network Corp. (DISH) $70.45 -1.92%
Wynn Resorts Ltd. (WYNN) $133.60 -1.78%
Comcast Corp. (CMCSA) $58.78 -1.72%
Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. (CTSH) $61.75 -1.67%
Autodesk Inc. (ADSK) $61.77 -1.55%