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Roundup: U.S. stocks end mixed as IMF cuts global growth outlook

Xinhua, October 7, 2015 Adjust font size:

U.S. stocks closed mixed Tuesday after wavering in a narrow range, as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) lowered its global growth forecast for 2015.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average edged up 13.76 points, or 0.08 percent, to 16,790.19. The S&P 500 fell 7.13 points, or 0.36 percent, to 1,979.92. The Nasdaq Composite Index lost 32.90 points, or 0.69 percent, to 4,748.36.

According to the IMF's latest World Economic Outlook report issued Tuesday, the global growth for 2015 is projected at 3.1 percent, down 0.2 percentage points from its July forecast of 3.3 percent. The IMF foresees a rebound to a growth of 3.6 percent in 2016.

While speaking in Lima, capital of Peru, during the first press briefing of the World Bank-IMF Annual Meetings Tuesday, Maurice Obstfeld, the IMF economic counselor, pointed out that China's economic transformation, the fall in commodity prices and the approaching normalization of U.S. monetary policy are the three main forces currently impact the global economy.

"These developments" would lead global growth to remain "moderate and uneven, with higher downside risks than were apparent" in the summer, he said.

On the economic front, the United States' international trade deficit in goods and services increased to 48.3 billion U.S. dollars in August from revised 41.8 billion dollars in July, the Commerce Department reported Tuesday.

In corporate news, shares of PepsiCo rose 1.32 percent to 97.07 dollars apiece Tuesday after the company reported better-than-expected quarterly results.

PepsiCo posted its organic revenue growth of 7.4 percent for the third quarter and core earnings per share of 1.35 dollars. The firm also raised its forecast for the year.

Shares of DuPont surged 7.66 percent to 55.21 dollars apiece Tuesday, as the chemical giant's Chief Executive Officer Ellen Kullman announced plans to retire this month.

The CBOE Volatility Index, often referred to as Wall Street's fear gauge, decreased 0.72 percent to end at 19.40 on Tuesday.

In other markets, oil prices soared as an official report projected that U.S. crude output will decrease through mid-2016.

The West Texas Intermediate for November delivery moved up 2.27 dollars to settle at 48.53 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while Brent crude for November delivery increased 2.67 dollars to close at 51.92 dollars a barrel on the London ICE Future Exchange.

The U.S. dollar decreased against other major currencies as the country's downbeat economic data lowered market expectation for an interest-rate hike by year-end.

In late New York trading, the euro rose to 1.1273 dollars from 1.1180 dollars in the previous session, while the dollar bought 120.27 Japanese yen, lower than 120.47 yen of the previous session.

Gold futures on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange closed higher for a third successive session, logging its highest settlement since Sept. 24.

The most active gold contract for December delivery closed up 8.80 dollars, or 0.77 percent, to settle at 1,146.40 dollars per ounce. Endit