Stocks End in the Red After Data

U.S. stocks ended down on Monday following several economic data reports. The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 26.08 points, or 0.16%, at 16,276.69. The S&P 500 was down 9.08 points, or 0.49%, at 1,857.44. The Nasdaq Composite was off 50.40 points, or 1.18%, at 4,226.38.

The U.S. economy is poised for springtime bloom if the latest Markit manufacturing report is taken at face value. Markit on Monday said its preliminary or flash PMI index tallied 55.5 in March, just slightly below February’s nearly four-year high. Any number over 50 signals growth.

Separately, the Chicago Fed’s national activity index increased to 0.14 in February from January’s mark of negative 0.45, which was revised downward.

China’s manufacturing engine contracted in the first quarter of 2014, according to the flash Markit/HSBC Purchasing Managers’ Index. The report came in below expectations but raised hopes for new stimulative measures.

San Francisco Fed President John Williams attempted on Monday to soothe market worries about an impending rate hike following Fed Chair Janet Yellen’s surprisingly hawkish comment after last week’s Fed policy meeting.

Five former aides to investment manager Bernard Madoff were convicted on Monday of charges that they helped their boss conceal his massive Ponzi scheme for years.

Networking giant Cisco (CSCO) says it’s expanding its cloud computing services with a heavy application-development focus at a scale that will send ripples through the cloud sector.