Jul 25, 2012, 08.57 AM IST

Wall Street ends lower; Euro slips to 2-year low

The US markets recover in final hour of trading but still end lower, with the Dow logging its third-consecutive triple-digit loss, pressured by ongoing worries in the euro zone.

Source: Moneycontrol.com

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The US markets recover in final hour of trading but still end lower, with the Dow logging its third-consecutive triple-digit loss, pressured by ongoing worries in the euro zone. Major indices pare losses following reports that the Federal Reserve is moving closer to action to spur growth. The CBOE VIX jumped almost 10% to end above 20.

Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.82% or 104.14 points at 12617.32. Nasdaq Composite shed 0.94% or 27.16 points at 2862.99. Standard & Poor's 500 fell 0.9% or 12.21 points at 1338.31.

In earnings action in US, apple delivered a huge earnings miss and its outlook for the current quarter disappointed. Their net income was 8.8 billion dollars, up 21% from a year ago. Revenue rose 23% to 35 billion dollars from a year ago. Apple's fourth-quarter guidance also disappointed: it forecast 7.65 dollars a share for earnings versus analysts' expectations of 10.22 dollars a share earnings

On economic data front, manufacturing activity in the mid-Atlantic region fell at a steeper rate than expected. Richmond Fed manufacturing index plummeted to minus 17 in July, sharply down from a reading of minus 3 in June. Also home prices rose in April, while logging a 3.7-percent year-over-year gain, according to the federal housing finance agency.

In key data to watch out for in US today, new home sales for June may come in slightly higher at 370000 compared to 369000 the previous month. The May numbers had seen a solid 7% plus uptick month on month. The EIA petroleum status report would also be detailed today.

In the currency space, the euro tumbled to a two-year low against the dollar pressured by weaker-than-expected German data.

In commodities, crude prices slip from the highest closing price in two days after an industry report showed crude stockpiles increased for the first time in four weeks in the US.

From the precious metals space, gold remains largely unchanged at around USD 1580 levels.