STOCKS FALL, GOLD DIVES INTO A BEAR MARKET: Here's What You Need To Know

REUTERS / David GrayStocks saw a modest sell-off in the wake of some bad economic data. Gold, on the other hand, got destroyed.

First the scoreboard:

Dow: 14,865, -0.0 pts, -0.0%
S&P 500: 1,588, -4.5 pts, -0.2%
NASDAQ: 3,294, -5.2 pts, -0.1%

And now the top stories:

• Retail sales unexpectedly fell 0.4 percent in March, which was worse than the unchanged level expected by economists. Excluding autos and gas, sales fell 0.1%. Economists were looking for a gain of 0.3%.
• Consumer confidence, which was also expected to be unchanged, unexpectedly fell to 72.3 from 78.6.
• Stocks started in deeper in the red, but managed to recover much of their losses. Still, given the disappointing economic data, some wonder if we're headed for another spring swoon in the markets and the economy.
• Meanwhile, gold had an absolutely horrific day. The yellow metal sold off sharply in four big downward moves throughout the day. Down over 20 percent from its September 2011 high, gold is now officially in a bear market.
• Gold wasn't the only commodity that sold off. It was a total bloodbath in the commodities markets with oil, gasoline, silver, platinum, and palladium selling off. These 8 Gold Ultra-Bulls Have Some Explaining To Do >
• Before the markets opened, banking giant JP Morgan announced better-than-expected earnings and revenue. CEO Jamie Dimon even had some nice things to say about the U.S. economy. “The exception is that loan growth across the industry has been softer this quarter, although year-on-year growth remained strong," noted Dimon. Small businesses remain cautious about the recovery and fiscal uncertainty, and are not investing their capital."
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