Stocks opened in negative territory and have remained there throughout the morning. The averages have drifted in a fairly narrow range as the market digests its most recent rally, with investors remaining on edge about the upcoming meeting between Presidents Trump and Xi at this weekend's G-20 summit. Investors may also be waiting on the sidelines for the release of the Fed minutes, which are scheduled for 2:00 pm ET today.
ECONOMIC EVENTS: In the U.S., initial jobless claims rose 10,000 to 234,000 in the week ended November 24. Personal income rose 0.5% in October, with spending up 0.6%. The NAR pending home sales index fell 2.6% to 102.1 in October.
COMPANY NEWS: Shares of Deutsche Bank (DB) are down about 5% near midday in New York trading after the banking giant said a number of searches are being conducted at its offices in Germany in connection with the so-called "Panama Papers." The money laundering investigation against employees and customers of Deutsche Bank concern activities from 2013 to the present year, Bloomberg reported, citing a spokeswoman for Frankfurt prosecutors.
Another German corporate giant, Bayer (BAYRY), announced a series of portfolio, efficiency and structural plans, including its intentions to exit the Animal Health business and allocate the resources necessary to support Animal Health to Bayer's core businesses of Pharmaceuticals, Consumer Health and Crop Science. Bayer also said it will review its strategic options in the coming months with a view to exiting the Coppertone and Dr. Scholl's product lines. The planned efficiency and structural measures will include a reduction of around 12,000 of 118,200 jobs worldwide, with a significant number of them in Germany, Bayer added.
The former CEO of CBS (CBS), Les Moonves, faces a new hurdle in securing a severance payment from the television network owner following a New York Times report that detailed steps the executive allegedly took to prevent sexual assault charges from coming to light. Moonves conspired with associate Marv Dauer to keep allegations, particularly those made by actress Bobbie Phillips, from being brought into the public eye, according to the article, though Moonves told the Times that he "strongly believes that the sexual encounter with Phillips more than 20 years ago was consensual."
MAJOR MOVERS: Among the noteworthy gainers was Nielsen (NLSN), which rose 3% after the Financial Times reported that Madison Dearborn has joined the group of PE firms exploring a takeout of the company. Also higher were Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) and Tech Data (TECD), which gained a respective 19% and 18% after reporting quarterly results.
Among the notable losers was Catalyst Pharmaceuticals (CPRX), which slid 9% after the FDA approved Firdapse tablets for the treatment of adults with Lambert-Eaton Myasthenic Syndrome. Also lower were Tilly's (TLYS) and Express (EXPR), which fell 21% and 10%, respectively, after reporting quarterly results.
INDEXES: Near midday, the Dow was down 73.84, or 0.29%, to 25,292.59, the Nasdaq was down 23.03, or 0.32%, to 7,268.56, and the S&P 500 was down 7.69, or 0.28%, to 2,736.10.
Deutsche Bank
-0.465 (-4.70%)
Bayer
+ (+0.00%)
Use VIAC, VIACA
-0.42 (-0.76%)
Now private 10/22
+0.82 (+3.14%)
Abercrombie & Fitch
+3.54 (+20.69%)
Tech Data
+13.27 (+18.04%)
Catalyst Pharmaceuticals
-0.31 (-9.87%)
Tilly's
-3.09 (-20.28%)
Express
-0.75 (-10.49%)