Stocks drop on shifting odds for rate cut

Friday, July 5, 2019, Vol. 43, No. 27

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks are closing lower for a second straight day as investors try to gauge the Federal Reserve's next move on interest rates.

A strong U.S. jobs report Friday dimmed investors' expectations that the Fed would cut its benchmark interest rate by as much as half a percentage point later this month. Many investors still expect a quarter-point cut.

Shares of health care and technology companies led the decliners Monday. Apple dropped 2.1% and Merck fell 1.8%.

Deutsche Bank dropped 6.1% after the German bank announced a massive restructuring.

The S&P 500 fell 14 points, or 0.5%, to 2,975.

The Dow Jones industrials lost 115 points, or 0.4%, to 26,806. The Nasdaq fell 63 points, or 0.8%, to 8,098.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies declined 0.9% to 1,561.