* U.S. housing starts sluggish for second month
* World shares on track for second straight decline
* S&P 500 falls back below 3,000 mark
(Updates with close of U.S. markets)
By Chuck Mikolajczak
NEW YORK, July 17 (Reuters) - A gauge of global equities
retreated for a second straight session and U.S. Treasury yields
fell as simmering trade concerns gained steam and the pace of
the U.S. corporate earnings season picked up.
On Wall Street, CSX Corp CSX.O was one of the biggest
drags on the benchmark S&P 500 index. The railroad tumbled
10.27% after it reported quarterly earnings that missed
expectations and cut its full-year revenue forecast on weakness
in its trade-related intermodal business. Fellow railroad Union
Pacific UNP.N lost 6.34% while Berkshire Hathaway BRKb.N ,
which owns railroad Burlington Northern Santa Fe, saw its Class
B shares fall 2.55%. The results come after U.S. President Donald Trump renewed
his threat to tax another $325 billion of Chinese goods on
Tuesday, which weighed on stocks. In addition, the U.S. could
also face Chinese sanctions, following a World Trade
Organization ruling on Tuesday, further complicating trade talks
between the two countries. "None of the underlying issues have really been put to bed,"
said Ed Campbell, portfolio manager and managing director at QMA
in Newark, New Jersey, regarding trade concerns. "It's a risk
factor that could come back at any time."
U.S. stocks have also eased over the past two sessions in
part due to a sluggish start to the quarterly earnings season.
Those declines also follow a rally that sent key stock averages
to record peaks on expectations for lower U.S. rates.
Big banks such as Citi C.N , JPMorgan JPM.N and Wells
Fargo WFC.N have recorded drops in net interest margins, a
sign low interest rates are hurting their bottomlines.
Bank of America BAC.N shares were up 0.7% after it
reported results on Wednesday but lowered its annual net
interest income guidance. While it is still early in what is expected to be a
lackluster reporting season, the earnings growth rate for the
second quarter now stands at 0.4%, according to Refinitiv data.
Expectations were recently calling for a quarterly decline in
S&P 500 results.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI fell 115.64 points,
or 0.42%, to 27,219.99, the S&P 500 .SPX lost 19.63 points, or
0.65%, to 2,984.41 and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC dropped
37.59 points, or 0.46%, to 8,185.21.
European shares closed lower as weakness in Swedish shares
on some disappointing quarterly results and a decline in shares
of oil majors helped snap a three-day winning streak.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index .STOXX lost 0.37% and
MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe .MIWD00000PUS shed
0.45%.
Along with the trade concerns, U.S. Treasury yields moved
lower after data showed weakness in the housing market for a
second straight month, even as mortgage rates have declined.
"The housing starts were a little weaker but the building
permits were definitely significantly weaker," said Justin
Lederer, an interest rates strategist at Cantor Fitzgerald in
New York.
Benchmark 10-year notes US10YT=RR last rose 20/32 in price
to yield 2.052%, from 2.12% late on Tuesday.
The dollar retreated after notching strong gains on Tuesday
following better-than-expected monthly retail sales data, while
pound bounced after touching a 27-month low versus the greenback
as no-deal Brexit concerns mounted. The dollar index .DXY fell 0.18%, with the euro EUR= up
0.12% to $1.1223. Sterling GBP= was last trading at $1.2434,
up 0.25% on the day.
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Housing starts, building permits Image https://tmsnrt.rs/2O9eboC
Global assets in 2019 http://tmsnrt.rs/2jvdmXl
Global currencies vs. dollar http://tmsnrt.rs/2egbfVh
MSCI All Country Wolrd Index Market Cap http://tmsnrt.rs/2EmTD6j
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