Lennar reports lower earnings and grim outlook, while Ethan Allen issues an profit warning. Wednesday brings Bernanke's testimony and durable goods ordersStocks finished lower Tuesday after home builder Lennar (LEN) reported a drop in earnings and won't achieve its earnings target this year. A drop in a key home-price index also sparked fears that problems in the housing sector could spread to other areas of the economy.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 71.78 points, or 0.58%, to 12,397.29. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 index was down 7.89 points, or 0.55%, to 1,429.61. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite lost 18.2 points, or 0.74%, to 2,437.43.
Looking ahead to Wednesday's JEC testimony by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, he is expected to be questioned on subprime home loans and the housing sector, as well as inflation and consumer spending. "This testimony will give Bernanke the opportunity to sort of set the markets straight on the FOMC's statement, and we may be able to get a better sense from his remarks just how worried, or not, he is with respect to contagion risk," says Action Economics.
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