Markets suffer a down day in response to Fed minutes

SAN FRANCISCO – U.S. stocks ended solidly lower Wednesday after minutes from the latest Federal Reserve meeting nipped hopes for more quantitative easing, and amid uncertainty over Greece.

A sharp turn lower for Apple Inc., the biggest weight on the Nasdaq Composite and S&P 500, also may have sapped some of the market’s strength.

After starting higher, the Dow Jones Industrial Average spent most of the day lower, deepening losses to close down 97.33 points, or 0.8 percent, to 12,780.95, its biggest decline of the year. Of 30 Dow components, 25 closed lower, led by a 2.5 percent retreat in Bank of America Corp. shares.

For all three indexes, losses deepened after the Federal Open Market Committee’s minutes from its Jan. 24-25 meeting showed only a few members of the policy-setting panel favored another round of quantitative easing – extraordinary stimulus measures that, over the past few years, have stoked stock gains.

The S&P 500 Index fell 7.27 points, or 0.5 percent, to 1,343.23, with industrials the worst performing of its 10 industry groups. All but materials, which closed flat, were lower.

The Nasdaq Composite Index shed 16 points, or 0.6 percent, to 2,915.83.

Kellogg adds Pringles brand to its salty snacks lineup

NEW YORK – Kellogg is hoping Pringles will satisfy its craving for another salty snack to sell.

The food giant is best known for its lineup of sweet breakfast items, including Frosted Flakes and Eggo frozen waffles. But on Wednesday it became the world’s second-biggest savory snack maker behind PepsiCo Inc.’s Frito-Lay with a $2.7 billion deal to buy the potato snack brand from Procter & Gamble.

The addition of Pringles bolsters Kellogg Co.’s cupboard of salty snacks such as Cheez-It and Keebler’s Club crackers. It also positions the company to expand at a time when the appetite for on-the-go foods is growing worldwide, particularly in emerging markets like China and India.

Pringles, known for its iconic tube packaging, is sold in more than 150 countries and gets two-thirds of its $1.5 billion in annual revenue from overseas.

Credit card companies have a mixed month for defaults

NEW YORK – The nation’s six-biggest credit card companies say they had mixed results for customer payments in January, splitting evenly between those that had lower defaults and those with increased write-off rates.

But even with the small upticks, analysts say the long-term trends point to continued improvements as the companies keep tight reins on problem customers and remain cautious about lending.

Standing out among the pack is Discover Financial Services, which reported a sharp drop in defaults, and has recovered from the impact of the recession faster than its peers. That reflects improved collection practices and more careful lending. Only American Express has lower rates, but it also has a more affluent customer base to rely on.

Bank of America currently has the card industry’s highest default and late payment rates. 

– From news service reports