Futures Skid, Rattled by Euro Zone Concerns
Futures dropped sharply Tuesday, extending the previous session's losses, as renewed concerns over the euro zone flared up after Greece’s prime minister said he would put the nation's bailout to a referendum, raising the risk of a disorderly default.
The announcement of a referendum in Greece shook global markets and led to heavy falls in euro zone banks. China’s factory activity was also its slowest since February 2009, adding to concerns for investors.
The collapse of MF Globaladded to fears that the eurozone debt problems would spill over to American shores.
The New York Times reported that hundreds of millions of dollars in customer money has gone missing from MF Global in recent days, prompting an investigation into the brokerage firm.
In company news, Pfizer slipped slightly even after the pharmaceutical giant reported better-than-expected resultsand reaffirmed its 2012 targets.
Credit Suisse plunged after the European bank reported disappointing third-quarter earnings. Brady Dougan, the group’s CEO, told CNBC he predicts further market volatilityin coming months. In addition, the bank announced it would cut another 1,500 jobs.
On the M&A front, BankAtlantic's skyrocketed more than 100 percent after BB&T said it will acquire the Florida-based bank subsidiary with $3.3 billion in deposits.
The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) kicks off its two-day policy-setting meeting and is likely to take a break from policy changes after two consecutive easing actions.
Among economic indicators, giving clues on the strength of the recovery in the world's biggest economy, the U.S. ISM Manufacturing Index is expected to see a tick up from 51.6 to 52.0 for October, based on a Reuters poll of 70 economists. The data is due at 10 am New York time.
Construction spending, also out at 10 am, should see a 0.3 percent increase to follow a strong gain of 1.4 percent in August, according to a Reuters poll.
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On Tap This Week:
TUESDAY: ISM mfg index, construction spending, FOMC meeting begins, auto sales, new CEO at JCPenney
WEDNESDAY: Weekly mortgage apps, Challenger job-cut report, ADP employment report, oil inventories, FOMC mtg announcement, Bernanke press conference; Earnings from Comcast, Clorox, MasterCard, Nissan, Sony, Time Warner, Kraft, Qualcomm, Transocean, WholeFoods
THURSDAY: Jobless claims, productivity and costs, Fed's Lockhart speaks, factory orders, ISM non-mfg index, G20 Summit, chain-store sales, Groupon IPO prices; Earnings from Unilever, Kellogg, AIG, CBS
FRIDAY: Non-farm payroll report
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