Stocks close lower amid weak economic dataDow -445.41 at 23504.35, Nasdaq -122.56 at 8393.18, S&P -62.70 at 2783.36 [BRIEFING.COM] The S&P 500 declined 2.2% on Wednesday, as the release of historically weak economic data undercut risk sentiment. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 1.9%, the Nasdaq Composite lost 1.4% to snap a four-session winning streak, and the Russell 2000 underperformed with a 4.3% decline. Highlighting the data: retail sales declined 8.7% m/m in March (Briefing.com consensus -10.0%), industrial production declined 5.4% m/m in March (Briefing.com consensus -3.3%), the Empire State Manufacturing Survey for April plunged 57 points to -78.2 (Briefing.com consensus -32.0), and the NAHB Housing Market Index for April plunged 42 points to 30 (Briefing.com consensus 57). In addition, more banks bolstered their loan-loss reserves to prepare for tougher times ahead, the Fed's Beige Book for April noted a sharp contraction in economic activity with business contacts expecting conditions to worsen, and The Wall Street Journal reported that the Paycheck Protection Program for small businesses was on pace to run out of money today. The plethora of reminders that economic conditions are woeful contributed to losses in all 11 S&P 500 sectors, but the S&P 500 remarkably still finished above Monday's closing level. The financials sector (-4.3%) was an influential laggard following earnings reports from Bank of America ($BAC 22.19, -1.54, -6.5%), Citigroup ($C 42.86, -2.56, -5.6%), and Goldman Sachs ($GS 178.52, +0.29, +0.2%). The energy sector (-4.7%) declined the most, though, as the group remained pressured by lower oil prices after the EIA projected a 9.2 mb/d decline in oil demand in 2020. WTI crude futures settled just below $20.00/BBL, losing 1.3%, or $0.27, to $19.95/BBL. UnitedHealth ($UNH 281.68, +11.18, +4.1%) was a notable standout after the Dow component reported better-than-expected earnings results. Its outperformance limited the decline in the health care sector (-0.5%). Separately, airline stocks finished mixed after the companies reached individual agreements with the government for payroll relief. Shares of American Airlines ($AAL 12.29, +0.35, +2.9%) closed higher, while Delta Air Lines ($DAL 24.35, -0.19, -0.8%) closed lower. Longer-dated U.S. Treasuries exhibited strength in a textbook trade given the negative economic data and decline in stocks. The 2-yr yield declined two basis points to 0.20%, and the 10-yr yield declined 11 basis points to 0.64%. The U.S. Dollar Index increased 0.7% to 99.57. Reviewing Wednesday's big batch of data: Retail sales declined 8.7% m/m in March (Briefing.com consensus -10.0%) following an upwardly revised 0.4% decline (from -0.5%) in February. Excluding autos, sales declined 4.5% (Briefing.com consensus -7.6%) following an unrevised 0.4% decline in February.The key takeaway from the report is that it captured the impact of the COVID-19 shutdown situation, as spending in discretionary categories cratered while spending for essential items accelerated in a big way.Industrial production declined 5.4% m/m in March (Briefing.com consensus -3.3%) following a downwardly revised 0.5% increase (from 0.6%) in February. Total capacity utilization was 72.7% (Briefing.com consensus 74.1%) following an unrevised 77.0% in February.The key takeaway from the report is that it captures the severity of the shutdown situation, best reflected in the pronouncement that the downturn in industrial production was the worst since 1946.The New York Fed's Empire State Manufacturing Survey plummeted 57 points to -78.2 (Briefing.com consensus -32.0).The NAHB Housing Market Index for April plunged to 30 (Briefing.com consensus 57) from 72 in March.Business inventories decreased 0.4% in February, as expected, while the January reading was revised down to -0.3% from -0.1%.The Mortgage Bankers Applications Index increased 7.3% week-over-week. Looking ahead, investors will receive the weekly Initial and Continuing Claims, Housing Starts and Building Permits for March, and the Philadelphia Fed Index for April on Thursday. Nasdaq Composite -6.5% YTDS&P 500 -13..9% YTDDow Jones Industrial Average -17.6% YTDRussell 2000 -29.1% YTD Market Snapshot Dow23504.35-445.41(-1.86%)Nasdaq8393.18-122.56(-1.44%)SP 5002783.36-62.70(-2.20%)10-yr Note +12/320.633NYSEAdv 480 Dec 2424 Vol 1.1 blnNasdaqAdv 742 Dec 2483 Vol 3.3 bln Industry Watch Strong: Health CareWeak: Financials, Energy, Materials Moving the Market -- Stocks retreat following weak economic data-- Retail sales drop 8.7% m/m in March, Industrial Production declines 5.4% m/m in March-- More banks bolster loan-loss reserves-- U.S. Treasuries exhibit strength ECONOMIC EVENTS: In U.S. data, retail sales plunged 8.7% in March and dropped 4.5% excluding autos. The Empire State manufacturing index dove 56.7 points to -78.2 in April, marking a record low. The NAHB housing market index cratered 42 points to 30 in April, which was the largest monthly drop on record. Industrial production dropped 5.4% in March, which was the weakest reading since January 1946. Business inventories slipped 0.4% in February, with sales dropping 0.5%. WTI crude oil prices fell to $19.65 following the EIA inventory data, which showed a 19.25M barrel rise in crude stocks, which was the largest weekly increase ever. Meanwhile, the latest data from the Johns Hopkins Whiting School of Engineering shows there are now over 2 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 129,045 deaths due to the disease. TOP NEWS: Airline stocks are trading higher after Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin confirmed last night that "a number of major airlines" intend to participate in the Payroll Support Program. Alaska Airlines ($ALK), Allegiant Air ($ALGT), American Airlines ($AAL), Delta Air Lines ($DAL), Frontier Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines ($HA), JetBlue Airways ($JBLU), United Airlines ($UAL), SkyWest Airlines ($SKYW), and Southwest Airlines ($LUV) all plan to participate, while "conversations continue with other airlines regarding their potential participation," Mnuchin stated. Another group of money center banks reported this morning, and like JPMorgan ($JPM) and Wells Fargo ($WFC) did yesterday, they are all putting aside a lot of capital to protect against losses that may be coming due to the COVID-19 crisis. Bank of America ($BAC) reported a Q1 provision for credit loss of $4.8B, which includes a $3.6B reserve build. Citi ($C) CEO Michael Corbat said the firm's earnings for the first quarter "were significantly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic," although the bank "had good revenue performance as the economic shocks caused by the pandemic weren't felt until late in the quarter." The deteriorating economic outlook and the transition to the new Current Expected Credit Loss standard caused Citi "to build significant loan loss reserves," Corbat added. Goldman Sachs ($GS) Chairman and CEO David Solomon commented that "quarterly profitability was inevitably affected by the economic dislocation, but added that he is "firmly convinced that our firm will emerge well-positioned to help our clients and communities recover" as public policy measures to stem the pandemic take root. Procter & Gamble ($PG) declared an increased quarterly dividend of 79.07c per share on its common stock, a 6% increase compared to the prior quarterly dividend. P&G also announced it is advancing the date for its third quarter earnings release to Friday, April 17, from the previously announced date of Tuesday, April 21. The company said its goal in advancing the release is "simply to provide shareholders information as quickly and transparently as possible, and should not be construed as an indication of either positive or negative results." Apple ($AAPL) announced the second-generation iPhone SE, which it said was "reinvented from the inside out, and is the most affordable iPhone." The new iPhone SE will be available for pre-order beginning Friday, April 17, starting at $399, and will be available from Apple, Apple Authorized Resellers and select carriers on Friday, April 24 in the U.S. and more than 40 other countries and regions. A portion of proceeds for iPhone SE (PRODUCT)RED purchases will go directly to Global Fund's newly established COVID-19 Response fund, Apple added. The Department of Defense Office of Inspector General has issued a report on the Joint Enterprise Defense Infrastructure Cloud Procurement, stating in part that "the DoD's decision to award the JEDI Cloud contract to a single contractor was consistent with applicable law and acquisition standards." While the report does not draw a conclusion "regarding whether the DoD appropriately awarded the JEDI Cloud contract to Microsoft rather than Amazon Web Services," the OIG said it believes "the evidence we received showed that the DoD personnel who evaluated the contract proposals and awarded Microsoft the JEDI Cloud contract were not pressured regarding their decision on the award of the contract by any DoD leaders more senior to them, who may have communicated with the White House." MAJOR MOVERS: Among the noteworthy gainers was Plantronics ($PLT), which rose 8% after it raised its Q4 revenue guidance and suspended its quarterly dividend. Also higher was Teladoc ($TDOC), which gained 4% after it provided upbeat Q1 revenue guidance, saying it has seen a surge in demand for its services due to COVID-19. Among the notable losers was Covanta ($CVA), which declined 15% after it withdrew its fiscal 2020 guidance and announced cost reduction measures in light of the coronavirus pandemic. Also lower was American Eagle ($AEO), which fell 11% after Loop Capital analyst Laura Champine downgraded the stock to Sell from Hold, citing an "unprecedented" amount of disruption on the company's operations from COVID-19. Source: (Briefing.com)(theFly.com) Disclosure: I may trade in the ticker symbols mentioned, both long or short. My articles represent my personal opinion and analysis and should not be taken as investment advice. Readers should do their own research before making decisions to buy or sell securities. Trading and investing include risks, including loss of principal. If you liked this article, please click the LIKE (thumbs up) button. Feel free to leave any comments, question, or opinions. (Sign-up if you haven't already done so). Follow us/bookmark us and check back occasionally for additional articles or comments on our page... Wild Tiger Trading - start/main page.