Stocks End Slightly Lower; Integrated Device Fades

Dow Jones Industrial Average futures eased 30 points to 17,517, while those for the S&P 500 index dipped 4 points to 2,062.25.

Orders for U.S. durable goods, including toasters and planes, dropped for the second month in a row in September.

Transportation stocks continue to see considerable weakness in mid-day trading, resulting in a 2.5% drop by the Dow Jones Transportation Average.

In futures trade, the ASX SPI 200 was down 21 points to 5,325, indicating a fall when the share market opens later this morning.

Both the CSI300 index of the largest listed companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen and the Shanghai Composite Index ended up 0.5 percent, to 3,589.26 points and 3,429.58 points, respectively. In Japan, the Nikkei 225 index slipped by 0.9 per cent.

Traders will also be closely watching Apple’s (NASDAQ: AAPL) third quarter earnings report, due after the bell.

Drug giants Merck (MRK) and Pfizer (PFE) also reported better than expected third quarter earnings and provided upbeat full-year guidance.

The S&P 500 posted 14 new 52-week highs and 13 new lows; the Nasdaq recorded 56 new highs and 122 new lows.

Premarket action has been quiet, with just a handful of quarterly reports; most notably, LendingTree +20% in reaction to better than expected earnings and upbeat guidance. According to preliminary data, volume finished mixed in the stock market today.

On the other hand, biotechnology stocks have shown a strong move to the upside on the day, driving the NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index up by 2%.

The Stoxx Europe 600 was flat midmorning, following a 2% gain on Friday, while Asian bourses pared early gains to close slightly higher.

Meanwhile, the major European markets all moved to the downside on the day. It’s now up a whopping 0.8%.

Apple shares fell 3.2% to $115.28, making it the biggest drag on all three major indexes, while a weak outlook from one of its suppliers, Dialog Semiconductor, led a fall in other semiconductors.

NYSE declining issues outnumbered advancing ones 2,293 to 797, for a 2.88-to-1 ratio; on the Nasdaq, 2,003 issues fell and 820 advanced, for a 2.44-to-1 ratio favoring decliners.

The flow of corporate results this week serves as the backdrop for the Fed to deliver its closely followed policy statement at the conclusion of its meeting Wednesday.