Stocks drop at start of big week for earnings

U.S. stock indexes saw their first declines in more than a week as investors prepared for a big week of earnings reports and monitored the progress of tax legislation.

“Earnings will be center stage, and then tax reform,” Ernie Cecilia, the chief investment officer at Bryn Mawr Trust Co. in Pennsylvania, said by phone. “Those are the two, whatever order you want to put them in.”

The S&P 500 Index and Dow Jones Industrial Average both fell Monday, pulled down by technology and industrial stocks. Europe’s bonds were broadly stronger as Treasuries steadied. West Texas crude approached $52 a barrel after OPEC reported record compliance with pledged production cuts. The dollar advanced to a 14-week high.

There’s no shortage of other potential catalysts out there for investors this week, from the reaction to the election in Japan to the boiling Catalonia crisis and very different moves toward autonomy in parts of Italy. Central banks also loom large, with a pivotal European Central Bank meeting due and the possible unveiling of President Donald Trump’s pick for Federal Reserve chair. Trump said Monday that he’s “very, very close” to announcing his nominee.

The euro weakened as Catalan separatists planned their response to Spain Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy’s moves to stamp his authority on the region. European stocks got support from the common currency’s slip, while Spanish shares underperformed. The pound advanced as U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May told Parliament that progress had been made in Brexit talks. In Japan, Shinzo Abe’s election victory sent the Nikkei to the longest winning streak on record.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 index slid 10 points, or 0.4 percent, to 2,565. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 55 points, or 0.2 percent, to 23,274. The Nasdaq composite lost 42 points, or 0.6 percent, to 6,587.