re: christmas crash oracle disappoints
Asia shockwave sinks futures U.S. stock futures are knocked lower after Thai investment curbs hit Asian stocks; Oracle shares fall after earnings fail to impress. December 19 2006: 6:30 AM EST
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Investors will be watching to see if economic readings on U.S. inflation and home building are enough to help stocks get over what was seen as a disappointing report from tech bellwether Oracle and the sell-off in Asian stocks on news out of Thailand.
Stock futures, which predict the direction of stocks at the open, were sharply lower.
Software maker Oracle (Charts) reported improved earnings that met consensus forecasts, but the expectation that it would top those estimates led the stock to sell-off 2.6 percent in after-hours trading.
The Thai central bank, worried that strength in the Thai baht would hurt exporters, put penalties on foreign investment there. That move sent Thai stocks down more than 13 percent, as it raised concerns on emerging markets. Major markets in Japan and Hong Kong closed down more than 1 percent, and major stock indexes in Europe also were lower in early trading.
At 8:30 a.m. ET investors will see the U.S. Producer Price Index, the reading of inflation at the wholesale level, as well as a government report on housing starts and building permits. A lower than expected inflation reading in the Consumer Price Index, the measure of price pressure at the retail level, lifted stocks to record levels.
Home builder Hovnanian Enterprises (Charts) reported a fiscal fourth quarter loss due to charges related to charges for impairments to its inventory of homes and land option write-offs. It also gave fiscal 2007 guidance sharply below forecasts. Shares of the builder fell 3.6 percent following the after-hours report Monday.
Federal Communications Commissioner Robert McDowell said late Monday he declined to cast the tie-breaking vote on whether to approve the proposed purchase by AT&T (Charts) of BellSouth (Charts), due to his past work for the companies. The decision left the FCC deadlock on the deal, which could lead the companies to offer more concessions to win approval. Both stocks lost less than 1 percent in after-hours trading.
Two lupus patients died from a rare brain infection after taking the drug Rituxan from Genentech (Charts) and Biogen Idec, according to an alert from U.S. health officials Monday. Genentech shares fell 2 percent after-hours on the news, while Biogen fell 5 percent.
Dow component Pfizer (Charts) hiked its dividend 21 percent as it tried to repair damage to its shares cased by the recent failure of its most important experimental drug. Shares of Pfizer gained 0.6 percent in after-hours trading following the move. Top of page
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