NEW YORK – Wall Street was poised for a lower open Tuesday after disappointing March retail sales figures and a sharp drop in inflation. The economic news outweighed better-than-expected earnings reports from Johnson & Johnson and Goldman Sachs Group Inc.
The Commerce Department said retail sales fell 1.1 percent in March, the biggest decline in three months. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters were expecting retail sales would rise 0.3 percent. The unexpected decline delivered a setback to hopes that the economy might be turning around.
The Labor Department said wholesale prices dropped sharply last month as the cost of gasoline and other energy plummeted. The Producer Price Index declined 1.2 percent in March. Analysts had been expecting no change to the figure.
Ahead of the opening bell, Dow Jones industrial average futures fell 36, or 0.45 percent, to 7,959. Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures fell 6.00, or 0.70 percent, to 848.00, while Nasdaq 100 index futures declined 4.00, or 0.30 percent, to 1,328.00.
The disappointing economic reports outweighed the earnings news from Johnson & Johnson and Goldman Sachs.
Johnson & Johnson said its first-quarter profit dipped, but not as far as had been predicted. The health care products maker said net income for the quarter amounted to $3.5 billion, or $1.26 per share. Analysts were expected profit of $1.22 per share.
After the market closed Monday, Goldman became the second major bank in less than a week to announce better-than-expected first-quarter results.
In another sign the banking sector might be improving, and on the heels of Wells Fargo’s surprisingly strong forecast last week, New York-based Goldman’s $1.66 billion profit easily beat analyst expectations. The New York-based bank also said it will issue $5 billion in stock to help repay the $10 billion loan it received from the government last year. Hundreds of banks received funds from the government as part of the U.S. Treasury’s plan to help unclog the stagnant credit markets.
Goldman announced its earnings a day earlier, releasing the results Monday after the market closed. Goldman’s chief financial officer, David Viniar, however cautioned during a conference call with investors Tuesday that the financial sector is still facing headwinds from pricing of troubled assets.
Meanwhile, bond prices were mixed. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, fell to 2.83 percent from 2.86 percent late Monday. The yield on the three-month T-bill, considered one of the safest investments, rose to 0.18 percent from 0.16 percent late Monday.
The dollar was mixed against other major currencies, while gold prices fell.
Overseas, Japan’s Nikkei stock average fell 0.9 percent. In afternoon trading, Britain’s FTSE 100 rose 0.6 percent, Germany’s DAX index gained 1.4 percent, and France’s CAC-40 rose 1 percent.
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