$0.045 cent's//not this week//or next, page-7

re: u.s. stocks sink as oil rockets over $56, gm w U.S. stocks sink as oil rockets over $56, GM warns
AAP News
7:01:020 17/03/2005
(Updates to late afternoon)
By Megan Davies
NEW YORK, March 16 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks fell on
Wednesday as crude oil futures rocketed to an all-time high and
General Motors Corp. warned that its 2005 earnings will be as
much as 80 percent below its previous forecast.
GM, the world's largest carmaker and a Dow component, was
the biggest drag on the Dow, after it lowered its outlook due
to slumping North American auto sales.
GM's stock fell 13 percent to $29.30, while automotive
parts company Delphi Corp., GM's largest supplier, shed 4.5
percent to $4.72. Rival automaker Ford Motor Co. fell 2.3
percent to $11.95.
The Dow Jones industrial average was down 112 points, or
1.04 percent, at 10,633. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index was
down 10 points, or 0.82 percent, at 1,188. The Nasdaq Composite
Index was down 17 points, or 0.84 percent, at 2,018.
Decliners led advancers by more than 2-to-1 on the NYSE.
U.S. crude oil futures soared to an all-time high of $56.50
on Wednesday after government data showed a larger than
expected drop in gasoline stocks last week. Crude for April
delivery last traded at $56.45, up $1.40.
Higher energy prices can hurt corporate profits and dampen
the consumer spending that drives the U.S. economy.
"We started the day with the very negative earnings
comments from General Motors and then the jump in oil to
another high," said Al Goldman, chief market strategist at A.G.
Edwards. "These factors came into a market where investors were
already quite nervous, so down we went. We've been in a
correction mode for six days now, so this just greased the
slide."
Meanwhile, the U.S. current account deficit was worse than
expected, fueling fresh worry about whether the United States
can attract the foreign investment necessary to finance the
gap. The dollar fell sharply after the report and weighed on
the stock market. A weaker greenback can hurt stocks because it
can dissuade investors from buying U.S. assets.
In other news, Boeing Co. was down 2.2 percent at $57.19.
Prudential analysts said in a note on Tuesday that risks to the
aircraft maker were highlighted by Continental Airlines'
warning that it could cancel a major Boeing jet order if its
unions rejected a pay-cut deal.
Meanwhile, steelmakers fell after Steel Dynamics Inc.,
which produces steel by melting down scrap, said first-quarter
earnings will probably be lower than expected.
Steel Dynamics fell 8 percent to $37.08. Its rival Nucor
Corp. was down 3.2 percent at $60.97.


REUTERS