U.S. stocks tank on weak earnings, consumer confidence

NEW YORK, April 25 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks suffered from a deep drop as traders reacted to weak earnings reports and consumer confidence in the United States.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 344.57 points, or 1.02 percent, to 33,530.83. The S&P 500 sank 65.41 points, or 1.58 percent, to 4,071.63. The Nasdaq Composite Index shed 238.05 points, or 1.98 percent, to 11,799.16.

All of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors ended in red, with materials and technology leading the laggards by dropping 2.15 percent and 2.09 percent, respectively. Utilities was down by 0.09 percent, the shallowest decline.

The U.S. consumer confidence index dropped to 101.3 in April from 104 in March, in comparison with the forecast consensus of 104, according to data issued by The Conference Board on Tuesday.

"While consumers' relatively favorable assessment of the current business environment improved somewhat in April, their expectations fell and remain below the level which often signals a recession looming in the short-term," said Ataman Ozyildirim, senior director of economics at The Conference Board.

"After this round of earnings and the latest consumer confidence report, the one thing that everyone can agree upon is that personal consumption is going to be a lot weaker going forward," said Edward Moya, senior market analyst at OANDA, a supplier of online multi-asset trading services.

Shares of First Republic Bank, a U.S. regional bank headquartered in San Francisco, plunged 49.38 percent on Tuesday as its earnings results in the first quarter reignited investors' concern about the banking sector.

As of March 31, First Republic Bank had 104.47 billion U.S. dollars of deposits, down 40.8 percent from Dec. 31, 2022, according to a release by the bank late Monday.

Moreover, shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (UPS) sank 9.99 percent on Tuesday after the package delivery giant reported weaker-than-expected Q1 results and expected continuous pressures facing sales volumes.

The S&P 500 Index is under strong pressure as traders react to the disappointing earnings reports, said Vladimir Zernov, analyst with market information supplier FX Empire, citing both First Republic Bank and UPS.