Investing.com - U.S. stocks were mixed on Tuesday, ahead of the release of a key report on U.S. manufacturing activity as concerns over the worsening of the sovereign debt crisis in Spain continued to dampen investor confidence.
During early U.S. trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.14%, the S&P 500 index eased down 0.06%, while the Nasdaq Composite index added 0.11%.
Sentiment came under pressure after data on Monday confirming that Spain’s economy entered a recession in the first quarter sparked fresh fears that austerity measures could impair economic growth in the euro zone.
Investors were also cautious ahead of a weekend of elections in Greece and France as well as the European Central Bank’s policy meeting on Thursday.
In addition, U.S. data on Monday showed that manufacturing activity in the Chicago area slowed significantly more-than-expected in April, while a separate report showed that consumer spending slowed last month.
In earnings, Pfizer saw shares drop 0.81% although the company topped earnings expectations as cost controls helped offset falling sales of its cholesterol drug Lipitor, which now faces competition from generic alternatives.
Earlier this month, the drug maker agreed to sell its baby formula division to Nestle for USD11.85 billion.
Meanwhile oil producer BP reported a bigger-than-expected earnings decline despite an increase in crude prices, as production fell after it was forced to sell fields to pay for the 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. The news sent the company’s shares down 2.26%
On the upside, shares in Chesapeake Energy surged 6.18% as the group announced it would replace CEO and founder Aubrey McClendon with a non-executive chairman in the near future and will also end a controversial program a year-and-a-half before the program was scheduled to close.
Bank of America also added to gains, rising 0.25% after the U.S. lender said it is planning about 2,000 staff cuts in its investment banking, commercial banking and non-U.S. wealth-management units.
Elsewhere in corporate news, Delta Airlines jumped 1.46% after announcing that it would buy a Pennsylvania oil refinery from ConocoPhillips for USD150 million. Shares in ConocoPhillips sank 22.34% following the announcement.
Other stocks in focus included Time Warner, due to report first-quarter results after the closing bell.
Across the Atlantic, European stock markets were mixed. The EURO STOXX 50 plunged 1.60%, and Britain's FTSE 100 added 0.38%. Markets in France and Germany were closed due to national holidays.
During the Asian trading session, Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index tumbled 1.78%, while markets in Hong Kong remained closed for a public holiday.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to release a closely watched report by Institute for Supply Management on manufacturing activity.
During early U.S. trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.14%, the S&P 500 index eased down 0.06%, while the Nasdaq Composite index added 0.11%.
Sentiment came under pressure after data on Monday confirming that Spain’s economy entered a recession in the first quarter sparked fresh fears that austerity measures could impair economic growth in the euro zone.
Investors were also cautious ahead of a weekend of elections in Greece and France as well as the European Central Bank’s policy meeting on Thursday.
In addition, U.S. data on Monday showed that manufacturing activity in the Chicago area slowed significantly more-than-expected in April, while a separate report showed that consumer spending slowed last month.
In earnings, Pfizer saw shares drop 0.81% although the company topped earnings expectations as cost controls helped offset falling sales of its cholesterol drug Lipitor, which now faces competition from generic alternatives.
Earlier this month, the drug maker agreed to sell its baby formula division to Nestle for USD11.85 billion.
Meanwhile oil producer BP reported a bigger-than-expected earnings decline despite an increase in crude prices, as production fell after it was forced to sell fields to pay for the 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. The news sent the company’s shares down 2.26%
On the upside, shares in Chesapeake Energy surged 6.18% as the group announced it would replace CEO and founder Aubrey McClendon with a non-executive chairman in the near future and will also end a controversial program a year-and-a-half before the program was scheduled to close.
Bank of America also added to gains, rising 0.25% after the U.S. lender said it is planning about 2,000 staff cuts in its investment banking, commercial banking and non-U.S. wealth-management units.
Elsewhere in corporate news, Delta Airlines jumped 1.46% after announcing that it would buy a Pennsylvania oil refinery from ConocoPhillips for USD150 million. Shares in ConocoPhillips sank 22.34% following the announcement.
Other stocks in focus included Time Warner, due to report first-quarter results after the closing bell.
Across the Atlantic, European stock markets were mixed. The EURO STOXX 50 plunged 1.60%, and Britain's FTSE 100 added 0.38%. Markets in France and Germany were closed due to national holidays.
During the Asian trading session, Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index tumbled 1.78%, while markets in Hong Kong remained closed for a public holiday.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to release a closely watched report by Institute for Supply Management on manufacturing activity.