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Rough start on Wall Street
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October 28, 1998: 10:20 a.m. ET
Concerns about Brazil, profit taking take stocks down in early trading
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Emerging market woes once again hit home Wednesday, driving U.S. stocks down in early trading amid skepticism about Brazil's ability to cure its economic troubles through a large austerity package and billions of dollars in international aid.
At around 10 a.m. the Dow Jones industrial average was 19.82 points lower at 8,346.22. On the New York Stock Exchange, trading volume reached 88 million shares with declines leading advances 1,452 to 859.
The Nasdaq Composite lost 6.95 to 1,710.68 and the S&P 500 index eased 4.55 to 1,060.79.
Concerns about Brazil's ability to survive a severe economic downturn loomed large, even after the country's government unveiled a $23.5 billion austerity package and the International Monetary Fund was expected to announce a $30 billion credit line to South America's largest economy.
Fears about Brazils dire economic straits helped U.S. stocks lose their footing Tuesday too, as rumors swirled in the market that Brazil was getting ready to devalue its currency.
The bond market was mostly lower. The benchmark 30-year Treasury bond fell 4/32 of a point in price for a yield of 5.09 percent.
The dollar also slipped against major world currencies as traders moved into Swiss franks, a currency perceived to be a safer bet amid the looming fear of a devaluation in Brazil.
Eyes on earnings again
In stocks, investors once again focused mostly on the stocks of companies reporting their latest earnings.
Among the early movers, shares of Intermedia Communications (ICIX) plummeted 8-1/2, or more than 33 percent, to 16-3/4 after late Tuesday the company reported a bigger-than-expected loss. Intermedia said it lost $2.42 a share before a restructuring charge in the third quarter, much more than the $2.08 a share the market had bet on.
Also taking a hit after two straight days of strong advances, shares of Internet sizzler eBay (EBAY) shed 5-5/16 to 77-3/16. Late Tuesday, the Web auctioneer reported better-than-anticipated third-quarter results, its first earnings report since the company went public in September.
America Online (AOL), another hot Internet company that late Tuesday said it made a bigger profit in the latest quarter than investors hat bet on and announced a 2-for-1 stock split, saw its stock lose 4 to 118.
Also taking a hit, despite better-than-hoped-for earnings, shares of biotechnology giant Amgen (AMGN) fell 1-1/2 to 76-1/8 even after the company reported a big jump in third-quarter profit.
Finally, in the day's merger news, shares of regional broker Interstate/Johnson Lane (IJL) shed 6-5/16, or more than 17 percent, to 30-11/16 following news that Wachovia (WB), the nation's 18th-largest bank, is buying the company for $230 million, a price some investors considered too low.
And shares of General Scanning (GSCN) soared 1-1/16, or almost 21 percent, to 6-3/16 on news the company will be joining forces with Canada's Lumonics in a deal that will create the world's largest maker of laser-based advanced manufacturing systems. 
-- by staff writer Malina Poshtova Zang
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