U.S. stocks fell on concern waning consumer spending may derail the economy’s recovery. American Express Co., General Electric Co. and McDonald’s Corp. declined.
Stocks have fallen for five weeks as government reports showed rising jobless claims and slowing industrial production, and companies from Apple Computer Inc. to Best Buy Co. cut profit forecasts. A report tomorrow will probably show consumer confidence fell to its lowest level since February, according to
economists surveyed by Bloomberg News.
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“Even if the economy is improving, we’re not seeing that reflected in corporate earnings,” said Aylin Uckunkaya Suntay, who manages $100 million for Pictet & Cie in Geneva. “The problems aren’t going away.”
September Standard & Poor’s 500 Index futures fell 3.80 to 988.20, suggesting the index will drop 0.1 percent when trading resumes at 9:30 a.m. in New York. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures declined 47 to 9220. Nasdaq 100 Index futures fell 14.50 to 1027.
The S&P 500 slid 1.8 percent last week, extending its decline this year to 14 percent, while the Dow shed 2.3 percent and the Nasdaq Composite Index fell 4.2 percent.
The Conference Board’s index of consumer confidence, due out tomorrow, probably fell in June to 106 from 109.8 last month, a survey of economists by Bloomberg News showed.
American Express, the biggest U.S. travel agency, fell 14 cents to $37.16 in Germany.
General Electric, whose products range from jet engines to household appliances, shed 45 cents to $28.50 in Germany, and McDonald’s, the world’s biggest restaurant chain, dropped 15 cents to $28.85.
Federal Reserve officials meet Tuesday and Wednesday, and none of the economists surveyed by Bloomberg News last week expect the central bank to raise the overnight rate from 1.75 percent, a 40-year-low.
Bloomberg News
