In mid-afternoon trading, the Dow is down 147 points, the Nasdaq is lower by 32 points, while the S&P500 index moved down 16 points (Yahoo Finance).
Stocks just can’t seem to get that momentum going on Tuesday, with no real data to push them foward. Around 11 Eastern, oil moved up, but that didn’t help either. Although energy shares were higher, they were 1.1 percent lower by mid-afternoon.
Fed minutes are duet to be released in about another 15 minutes. It will be interesting to see if that can make stocks head for a turnaround. The chances of that happening are rather slim, since a new slant to earlier Fed statements are unlikely.
In other news items, according to a survey the credit crisis tops the list of “gravest” threats to the U.S. economy over terrorism. Of the 280 economists who were surveyed, 32 percent said bad debt and the inability of people to pay back debt, concerns them them most. Security issues such as terrorism was only listed at 20 percent.
Also, according to the Conference Board, the consumer confidence index declined in August to the lowest level since the aftermath of Hurrican Katrina. The index now stands at 105.
Reports say that the housing slump, and the declining prices of stocks has Americans feeling less wealthy. But consumer spending accounts for 70 percent of the economy, and will continue to play a big role in where the economy is headed.
In yet another report by the Census Bureau, the natinal poverty rate declined for the first time since President Bush took office. However, the number of Americans who do not have medical insurance continued to rise last year.
Although most Americans still have employer-based insurance, thos numbers seem to be dwindling as well.
The poverty line is used for determining eligibility for health, housing, nutrition and child-care benefits.
As far as gas prices go, Keith Roysdon of The StarPress.com writes that gas prices seem to be falling although we’re heading closer to Labor Day. The tradition of gas prices hitting peak levels right before a holiday weekend appears to be dwindling. Gas was quoted at $2.80 Monday; it has declined as much as $2.72 a gallon on Tuesday.
The latest readin on oil – U.S. light crude for front month delivery dropped 50 cents to $71.47 a barrel.