Stocks fell more than 1% as fears of turmoil in the Middle East added to ongoing concerns about a fiscal showdown in the United States. The price of oil jumped more than 1% after an Israeli airstrike killed a Hamas leader in the Gaza Strip, fostering the view that Middle East unrest would dent supply. Also, anti-austerity strikes were held across Europe as labor groups staged a "Day of Action and Solidarity." On the domestic front, the FOMC minutes suggested the central bank will continue to buy assets once its so-called Operation Twist program ends. U.S. retail sales fell 0.3% in October, citing a negative impact from Superstorm Sandy, slightly worse than the 0.2% decline forecast. Separately, PPI decreased 0.2%, business inventories rose 0.7% in September, slightly better than the 0.6% rise economists had forecast. Facebook rose 12.6% even though more than 800 millions shares became available to be sold. Cisco rose 4.8% after the upbeat earnings and sales data reported late Tuesday. Texas Instruments lost 2.1% ater the co. said it will cut about 4.8% of its global workforce in a cost-reduction effort as it shifts away from the mobile market. In the evening trade NetApp surged 10% after strong earnings report. Implied volatility inched higher on massive trading volumes.
