The markets opened lower with the Dow falling 50 points to 9989 as new home sales dropped to a record low. Nasdaq lost 10 points to 2113.
On the upside
Somaxon Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: SOMX) announced a co-promotion agreement with Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG) for its insomnia treatment Silenor.
Second quarter earnings fell for American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE: AEO) due to price cuts but revenue rose.
Coldwater Creek (Nasdaq: CWTR) reversed year ago losses to post a better than expected profit for the second quarter as revenue rose.
On the downside
SkyPeople Fruit Juice (Nasdaq: SPU) priced its public offering of more than 5 million common shares at $5.00 per share.
Shares of Allied Irish Bank (NYSE: AIB) fell after Standard & Poor's downgraded Ireland's sovereign debt.
The mechanics union at American Airlines (NYSE: AMR) rejected a labor contract as inadequate.
In the broad market, declining issues outpaced advancers by a margin of more than 5 to 2 on the NYSE and by more than 2 to 1 on Nasdaq. The Russell 2000 which tracks small cap stocks slipped 2 points to 593.