US dollar strong, oil falls, global stocks hold despite gains

By Sam Forgione NEW YORK (Reuters) – The U.S. dollar rose against the euro on Monday ahead of a late-week meeting of the European Central Bank, while major global stocks ended the day unchanged despite more news that economic growth in China is slowing. U.S. stocks ended the day unchanged, but investors were wary of poor-quality third-quarter earnings reports. “People are waiting for an earnings storm,” said Peter Tuz, president of Chase Investment Counsel in Charlottesville, Virginia. “There was enough negative guidance going forward that people were skeptical about the direction of the market.” Several Dow components reported quarterly results this week, including Caterpillar, Boeing and Coca-Cola. Earnings for S&P 500 stocks are expected to fall about 4.0 percent in the third quarter from a year earlier, according to Thomson Reuters data. Morgan Stanley’s profit fell 42 percent after a weak quarter for big U.S. banks, and the bank’s shares ended the day down 4.8 percent. The Dow Jones Industrial Average <.DJI> rose 14.57 points, or 0.08 percent, to 17,230.54, the S&P 500 index <.SPX> gained 0.55 points, or 0.03 percent, to 2,033.66, and the Nasdaq Composite <.IXIC> added 18.78 points, or 0.38 percent, to 4,905.47. STRONG U.S. DOLLAR The euro fell to a 10-day low against the U.S. dollar as investors focused on a European Central Bank meeting later in the week that could pave the way for more stimulus to boost euro zone inflation. (USD/) The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s value against a basket of six major currencies, was last up 0.46 percent at 94.968 <.DXY>“I think the ECB will push back on the euro’s strength on Thursday,” said Mark McCormick, a currency strategist at Credit Agricole in New York. “We don’t expect them to announce a new program, but they could lay the groundwork for more quantitative easing.” A stronger U.S. dollar and news of slower growth in China put pressure on oil prices, which fell about 4.0 percent. (O/R) China’s economic growth slowed to 6.9 percent in the third quarter, still ahead of forecasts for 6.8 percent. The U.S. energy index <.SPNY> fell 1.9 percent, while U.S. crude prices fell 2.9 percent. Exxon XOM.N fell 1.8 percent to $80.99 and Chevron CVX.N fell 1.4 percent to $90.03, weighing on the S&P 500 and the Dow the most. “Energy and oil prices were down today, industrials and materials, so that took some of the heat off the stocks,” said Mark Luschini, chief investment strategist at Janney Montgomery Scott in Philadelphia. MSCI World Stock Index <.MIWD00000PUS>which tracks 46 key global markets, was last down 0.17 percent, while the pan-regional FTSEurofirst 300 index <.FTEU3> closed up 0.21 percent, with the yield on the 30-year U.S. Treasury note rising to a near-week high of 2.91 percent. In futures trading, U.S. gold for December delivery fell 0.9 percent to $1,172.80 an ounce. (Additional reporting by Abhiram Nandakumar and Gertrude Chavez-Dreyfuss, Barani Krishnan and Caroline Valetkevich in New York)