How is the stock market doing today, May 26, 2015: The stock market slumped 190 points as Greece woes, Federal Reserve rate chatter, and a stronger dollar fueled a sell-off.
How Is the Stock Market Doing Today?
Markets fell across the board:
Dow: 18,041.54, -190.48, -1.04%
S&P 500: 2,104.20, -21.86, -1.03%
Nasdaq: 5,032.75, -56.61, -1.11%
The U.S. dollar was near a one-month high against a basket of international currencies, while statements from Fed Vice Chair Stanley Fischer signaled the central bank's plans to increase interest rates could fuel global market volatility.
The S&P 500 Volatility Index (VIX), the market's fear gauge, surged 15.9% on the day.
Top Stock Market News Today
Market Recap: All 10 S&P 500 sectors slipped this afternoon, with the energy sector seeing the sharpest decline. A stronger U.S. dollar and expected increases in domestic production triggered the downturn. WTI crude futures for July fell 2.6% to hit $58.12 per barrel. Meanwhile, Brent oilwas down more than 2.6% to hit $63.81 per barrel. Shares of Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX) slipped 1.5%, while Royal Dutch Shell Plc. (NYSE ADR: A) fell nearly 2.5%.
Goldman Growls: Banking giant Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE: GS) recently forecasted that the S&P 500 will remain flat over the next 12 months. The adage "Sell in May, and Go Away" has sent some investors to the exits. But our Chief Investment Strategist Keith Fitz-Gerald has a message to investors: Don't listen to what they are saying, follow what they are doing. And Goldman is up to something... watch Keith's recent comments during an interview on FOX Business
On Tap Wednesday: On Wednesday, investors will keep an eye on mortgage applications and earnings reports from a number of retailers including Chico's FAS Inc. (NYSE: CHS), Costco Wholesale Corp. (Nasdaq: COST), Michael Kors Holdings Ltd. (NYSE: KORS), and Tiffany & Co. (NYSE: TIF).
Stocks to Watch No. 1, TWC: Shares of Time Warner Cable Inc. (NYSE: TWC) gained 7.26% on news that Charter Communications Inc. (Nasdaq: CHTR) will purchase the cable giant for roughly $56 billion and debt. But TWC shares were still well below the proposed deal price of $195. In April, Comcast was set to acquire Time Warner Cable, but the companies abandoned the deal over antitrust concerns. Here's our full story on the Charter-Time Warner merger.
Stocks to Watch No. 2, FSLR: Shares of First Solar Inc. (Nasdaq: FSLR) fell 7.28%, the sharpest downturn on the S&P today. The news came after Royal Bank of Canada downgraded the company's stock from "sector perform" to "underperform." The bank said it expects solar sales to be flat in 2015, with sluggish revenue growth in 2016.
Stocks to Watch No. 3, LSPN: Shares of LivePerson Inc. (Nasdaq: LPSN) soared 13.65% on news that Nice Systems (Nasdaq ADR: NICE) may acquire the chat software company very soon. NICE shares slipped 4.3% on the day.
Stocks to Watch No. 4, AAPL: Shares of Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL) were the largest drag on the S&P 500, sliding 2.2% on the day. According to reports, the tech giant hasn't been able to fulfill inventory demand for its Apple Watch, and the product is still only available at select company stores.
Stocks to Watch No. 5, EMC: Shares of EMC Corp. (NYSE: EMC) slid more than 2% on news that the company will purchase private cloud-computing firm Virtustream for $1.2 billion. The company is seeking to get a stronger foothold in the cloud-based market, as its stock has retreated nearly 9% on the year. The deal is expected to close in the third quarter.
Garrett Baldwin is a globally recognized research economist, financial writer, consultant, and political risk analyst with decades of trading experience and degrees in economics, cybersecurity, and business from Johns Hopkins, Purdue, Indiana University, and Northwestern.