Daily Data Flow: Boston Explosions Push Stocks Down Further; Gold Panic Brings Commodities Down; Italy Proclaims Bond Sale a Success

Stocks Decrease Further after Boston Explosions (Reuters)
After two explosions near the finish line of the Boston Marathon today, stocks continued to slide. A fall in commodity prices had been the main contributor to the market losses before the explosions occurred. In total, the S&P 500 declined more than two percent, and the Dow Jones fell almost one-and-a-half percent.

Gold Panic Brings Commodities Down (CNBC)
China’s discouraging data drove investors to sell gold, and the resulting panic dragged other commodities, such as precious metals and oil, down as well. “I think it’s all the snuffing out of positive economic sentiment that the global economy is going to be stronger this year,” said Gene McGillian, analyst with Tradition Energy. “You have ample supplies of oil. You have ample supplies of gasoline. You haven’t seen a pickup in gasoline demand yet. Down at these levels the Fed’s easing policies are going to provide some support.”

Italy Proclaims Bond Sale a Success (Reuters)
On the first day of a bond sale, Italy rose almost 9 billion euros, and the country will close the sale two days early due to its success. However, Italy still has much progress to make in paying its debts: “We will have to issue 20 billion euros more debt this year to cover state debt payments,” said the head of Italy’s Debt Management Office, Maria Cannata.