US stocks end lower

The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 120.72 points, or 0.69%, to 17419.75.

The Nasdaq composite edged up seven points, or 0.1 percent, to 5,135.

Investors will also keep a close eye on Friday’s non-farm payrolls report for any further clues on the federal reserve’s first rate hike in nearly nine years.

U.S. stocks dropped for a third straight day Tuesday as investors assessed some disappointing earnings reports.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 index is down 20.28 points, or 1 per cent.

Germany’s DAX gained 1% and France’s CAC 40 added 0.6%.

Priceline climbed 5.2 percent after reporting second-quarter net income of $12.45 per share, much above the analyst forecast for $11.98 per share.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 139.17 points, or 0.8 percent.

Investors are waiting for a sustained pickup in consumer spending, which could spur earnings and stock prices for a wide swath of companies.

In Europe, Greece’s stock market sank 16 percent as it reopened from a month-long shutdown brought on by the near collapse of the country’s financial system during its high-wire bailout negotiations.

The main takeaway is that at the beginning of the 1994, 1999 and 2004 tightening cycles, the S&P 500 Index (SPX, 2099.84) was lower one and three months later.

Elsewhere, European equity markets were in the red, with oil and gas stocks under pressure as investors sifted through another batch of corporate results, while Asian stocks closed on a mixed note with Japanese stocks rising on US economic optimism and a weaker yen. Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) led a group of five blue-chip victors, with a 1.4% gain.

In other markets, gold prices lost 0.4% to $1091.30 an ounce. The meat producer, which owns the Jimmy Dean breakfast sausage brand, blamed conditions in the beef market for its woes, citing high cattle costs and “export issues”, as factors that were hurting its profits. Treasury prices rose slightly, pushing the 10-year yield down to 2.172% from 2.207% on Friday.

Hardwood flooring retailer Lumber Liquidators Holdings plunged 19.1% after swinging to a second quarter loss on the back of a sharp decline in sales and was on track to open at its lowest since November 2011.