Advertisement
Singapore markets close in 6 minutes

  • Straits Times Index

    3,270.66
    +45.49 (+1.41%)
     

  • Nikkei

    37,552.16
    +113.55 (+0.30%)
     

  • Hang Seng

    16,828.93
    +317.24 (+1.92%)
     

  • FTSE 100

    8,042.07
    +18.20 (+0.23%)
     

  • Bitcoin USD

    66,177.34
    +122.81 (+0.19%)
     

  • CMC Crypto 200

    1,392.87
    -21.89 (-1.55%)
     

  • S&P 500

    5,010.60
    +43.37 (+0.87%)
     

  • Dow

    38,239.98
    +253.58 (+0.67%)
     

  • Nasdaq

    15,451.31
    +169.30 (+1.11%)
     

  • Gold

    2,318.00
    -28.40 (-1.21%)
     

  • Crude Oil

    82.72
    +0.82 (+1.00%)
     

  • 10-Yr Bond

    4.6230
    +0.0080 (+0.17%)
     

  • FTSE Bursa Malaysia

    1,561.76
    +2.17 (+0.14%)
     

  • Jakarta Composite Index

    7,131.75
    +57.93 (+0.82%)
     

  • PSE Index

    6,506.80
    +62.72 (+0.97%)
     

U.S. Stocks Remain Lower After ADP Report

Adam Zoll

U.S. Market
U.S. stocks fell at the open and stayed lower, with new hiring numbers in focus.

Automatic Data Processing reported that private-sector employers added 212,000 jobs in February, slightly below expectations and below a revised January gain of 250,000. The previous figure for January had been 213,000.

The market also awaited the release of the latest Fed Beige Book, scheduled for 2 p.m. EST.

Meanwhile, the dollar continued to strengthen, hitting an 11-year high versus the euro, which fell to $1.1088.

At midday the Dow was down 0.6%, the S&P 500 was down 0.5%, and the Nasdaq
was down 0.3%.

ADVERTISEMENT

Stocks on the Move
 PetSmart (PETM) posted better-than-expected fourth-quarter numbers with a sale to a private equity firm looming. The company reported a profit of $132.1 million, or $1.32 per share, for the quarter ending Feb. 1, up from $131.5 million, or $1.28 per share, the year before. PetSmart shareholders are expected to vote Friday on a buyout offer worth more than $8.2 billion from a group led by BC Partners Inc. At midday PetSmart shares were flat.

Shares of teen apparel retailer Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) were down 13.1% after the company announced better-than-expected fiscal fourth-quarter profits but a 10% decline in same-store sales and 14% decline in total sales, below analyst estimates. Net earnings for the quarter ending Jan. 31 fell to $44.4 million, or 63 cents a share, down from $66.1 million and 85 cents a share for the same period a year earlier.

Foreign Markets
In Europe, stocks edged higher following the release of a slew of economic reports that shed little light on the health of the eurozone economy. Near the end of the session, the FTSE 100 was up 0.4% while the Paris CAC and DAX were both 1.0% higher.

Asian stocks were mixed, with the Shanghai Composite ending 0.5% higher, the Nikkei 225 dropping 0.6% and the Hang Seng losing 1.0%.