Alcoa Earnings Dragging Markets Lower (AA)

Alcoa (NYSE: AA) reported disappointing earnings after the bell yesterday which has contributed to a down day for U.S. equity markets. The Alcoa (AA) numbers along with lower guidance from Chevron (NYSE: CVX) have sparked investor concern over the prospects of a global recovery. Another catalyst for the sell off has been interest rate increases in China.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average has declined 63 points to 10,601 so far today. The S&P 500 is nearly 13 points, or 1.12%, in the red. The Nasdaq market has suffered the greatest losses today as the sell off in big cap tech continues to accelerate at the beginning of 2010. It has declined around 35 points to 2,278.