U.S. stock futures fell, indicating the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index will extend its biggest drop in two weeks, as results from International Business Machines Corp. (IBM) to Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) disappointed investors.
IBM, the biggest computer-services company, sank 4.1 percent in early New York trading after reporting sales that missed analyst estimates. Goldman Sachs lost 2.5 percent and Bank of America Corp. (BAC) declined 4.6 percent.
Contracts on the S&P 500 expiring in December slid 0.5 percent to 1,188.1 at 7:42 a.m. in New York. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures fell 63, or 0.6 percent, to 11,238.
“There are disappointments in earnings and in the economy,” said Clemence Bounaix, who helps oversee about $3.4 billion at KBL Richelieu Gestion in Paris. “Even in emerging markets, there’s a deceleration. That, along with the euro-zone debt problem that isn’t resolved, is weighing on the market.”
The S&P 500 last week posted its biggest weekly gain since 2009 amid optimism over corporate earnings and steps by European leaders to support the region’s banks. The benchmark measure surged 11 percent from Oct. 3, its lowest close in more than a year, through Oct. 14. The rebound brought the gauge close to the top of a price range between 1,074.77 and 1,230.71, where it has traded for more than two months.
European Divisions
While Group of 20 finance ministers and central bankers press European Union leaders to set out a strategy by the end of the week, divisions have flared over an emerging plan to avoid a Greek default, bolster banks and curb contagion.
The S&P 500 recorded its biggest drop in two weeks yesterday after Germany said the euro-area leaders won’t provide the complete fix to the debt crisis that global policy makers are pushing for at an Oct. 23 summit.
In Greece, a parliamentary debate is due to begin today on another round of austerity measures amid public protests and labor-union unrest.
A report today showed China’s economy grew 9.1 percent in the third quarter from a year earlier, the slowest pace since 2009, as the central bank tightened monetary policy and export demand weakened.
To contact the reporter on this story: Adria Cimino in Paris at acimino1@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Andrew Rummer at arummer@bloomberg.net
