The markets opened lower as home prices tumbled while foreclosures more than doubled from year-ago levels. The Dow lost 46 points to 12,824 as Nasdaq dropped 8 points to 2415.
On the upside
Profits at MasterCard (NYSE: MA) more than doubled as global demand for its credit card services offset weakness in the U.S. market.European-based Royal Dutch Shell PLC (NYSE: RDS-B) posted surging profits due to increases in oil prices.
Corning (NYSE: GLW) reported profits that more than tripled due to strong demand for glass used in flat-screen TVs and computers.
On the downside
Shares of Merck (NYSE: MRK) plunged after the FDA issued a "not approvable" letter for its cholestrol drug candidate. The Dow component dragged down the index.
Deutsche Bank AG (NYSE: DB) wrote down $4.2 billion in the 1st quarter to post its first quarterly loss since 2003.
Fair Issac (NYSE: FIC) reported flat revenues and lower profits as competitors launched a competing credit scoring system.In the broad market, declining issues outpaced advancers by a margin
of more than 5 to 4 on the NYSE and by 4 to 3 on Nasdaq. The
Russell 2000 which tracks small cap stocks lost 3 points to 721.
