NEW YORK >> Wall Street stalled today, held back by a fresh round of earnings warnings and decreased trading activity ahead of the Fourth of July holiday. No fireworks here,
stocks close flatBy Lisa Singhania
Associated PressThe Dow Jones industrial average closed down 22.61 at 10,571.11 after an abbreviated session that ended early at 1 p.m. Eastern time. U.S. markets will be closed tomorrow for the holiday and re-open Thursday.
Broader stock indicators were nearly unchanged. The Nasdaq composite index slipped 7.92 to 2,140.80, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index lost 2.26 to 1,234.45.
Advancing issues led decliners on the New York Stock Exchange in quiet trading, with 1,601 rising, 1,369 falling and 237 unchanged. Volume finished the session at 717.9 million shares.
The Russell 2000 index fell 1.56 to 496.83. The NYSE composite index fell 1.26 to 626.01, and the American Stock Exchange composite index rose 1.00 to 904.06.
The price of the 10-year Treasury note fell 15/32 to 97 14/32, while its yield rose 6 basis points to 5.384. The price of the 30-year note fell 15/32 to 95 3/32 while its yield rose 3 basis points to 5.720.
DuPont fell 92 cents to $47.20 after sharply curtailing its earnings estimate for the second quarter. Axsys Technologies fell 17 cents to $10.74 after reducing its second quarter outlook and slashing 9 percent of its work force. In the software sector, BroadVision dropped 89 cents to $4.04 after lowering its revenue forecast.
Even a new Commerce Department report today showing U.S. factory orders rebounding in May to their best performance in nearly a year failed to inspire investors.
"The whole key here is earnings, and when earnings will start to turn," said Robert Harrington, co-head of listed block trading at UBS Warburg.
Also today, European regulators, as expected, blocked General Electric's $41 billion purchase of Honeywell International, citing competitive concerns.