April 29 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks fell as consumer confidence slid to a five-year low, property values slumped and a drop in oil and metal prices pushed commodity producers lower.

Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. and Newmont Mining Co. declined as gold and copper retreated, while homebuilders dropped for the first time in four days on a report that housing prices plunged by the most on record. Merck & Co., the third- biggest U.S. drugmaker, tumbled the most in a month after failing to win approval for a cholesterol pill. Apple Inc. and Google Inc. advanced, leading the Nasdaq Composite Index to its fourth gain in five days.

The Standard & Poor's 500 Index lost 5.43 points, or 0.4 percent, to 1,390.94, its second straight decline. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 39.81, or 0.3 percent, to 12,831.94. The Nasdaq added 1.7, or 0.1 percent, to 2,426.1. About five stocks fell for every three that rose on the New York Stock Exchange.

``Probably the most important things are the housing price index and fairly low consumer confidence,'' said Dean Gulis, part of a group that manages about $3 billion in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, for Loomis Sayles & Co. ``The market is viewing this news as confirming a pretty punk economy at the moment.''

Fed Watch

Six of 10 industry groups in the S&P 500 retreated after the Conference Board's confidence index fell to 62.3 and the S&P/Case-Shiller home-price index dropped 12.7 percent from a year earlier, more than forecast and the most since the figures were first published in 2001. The Federal Reserve is expected to lower the benchmark interest rate for a seventh time tomorrow to help bolster the economy, according to Fed funds futures.

The dollar rose to a three-week high against the euro and Treasury bonds advanced on speculation the Fed will also signal tomorrow that it's done cutting interest rates.

Mining companies retreated as the strengthening dollar reduced the appeal of metals as a hedge against inflation. Freeport-McMoRan, the world's second-largest copper company, dropped $5.08, or 4.4 percent, to $110.72. Newmont, the third- biggest gold producer, lost $1.06 to $42.93.

D.R. Horton fell 46 cents to $16.69, leading an index of 15 homebuilders to a 0.9 percent decline. Home prices will probably keep sliding, economists say, as foreclosures push even more properties onto the market just as stricter lending rules limit the number of qualified buyers.

Merck's Tumble

Merck lost $4.30, or 10 percent, to $37.14. Cordaptive failed to win approval from U.S. regulators less than a week after it was recommended for marketing in the European Union. Merck said it plans to submit more data to the Food and Drug Administration to demonstrate the effectiveness of the treatment.

Apple, maker of the iPhone and Macintosh computers, climbed $2.81 to $175.05. Google, operator of the most-popular search engine, rose $6.35 to $558.47.

Microchip Technology Inc. gained $1.48, or 4.2 percent, to $36.88. The maker of semiconductors for toasters and garage-door openers reported fourth-quarter profit of 42 cents a share, excluding some items, more than the 39-cent average estimate of analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.

Nvidia Corp., the world's second-largest maker of computer- graphics chips, added 41 cents, or 2.1 percent, to $20.20.

Oil Retreats

Energy companies retreated 1.5 percent as a group and contributed the most to the drop in the S&P 500. Exxon Mobil Corp., the biggest U.S. oil company, slid 66 cents to $91.79.

Crude oil fell more than $3 a barrel, the biggest decline in four weeks, after BP Plc restarted a North Sea oil pipeline and the dollar strengthened.

McDermott International Inc. dropped $4.97, or 8.3 percent, to $54.83. The manufacturer of offshore oil and natural-gas platforms said it expects profit of as much as 54 cents a share. That's lower than the 69-cent average estimate of analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.

Chevron Corp. posted the steepest rise in the Dow average, climbing $2.24, or 2.4 percent, to $94.74. The second-biggest U.S. oil company was raised to ``buy'' from ``neutral'' at Goldman Sachs Group Inc. The brokerage also upgraded the integrated oil industry to ``attractive'' from ``neutral.''

Masco Corp. lost $1.05, or 5.3 percent, to $18.65. The maker of Delta faucets and Behr paint said first-quarter profit plunged 99 percent and forecast lower annual earnings because of the U.S. housing slump.

Under Armour Inc. tumbled $3.96, or 10 percent, to $34.62. The maker of polyester athletic clothes said first-quarter profit shrank 71 percent on higher costs and profitability will decline this year.

Futures contracts show traders are pricing in an 82 percent chance the central bank will lower its target for overnight lending between banks by a quarter-percentage point to 2 percent. The rest of the bets are for no change.

`About Done'

``Everyone out there acknowledges if the Fed isn't done already, it's about done,'' said Edward Hemmelgarn, who oversees about $350 million as president of Shaker Investments Inc. in Cleveland. ``We're in for a prolonged period of slower growth.''

A government report tomorrow may show the economy expanded at a 0.5 percent annual pace from January through March, according to the median estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg. That would mark the slowest growth in five years. The U.S. also probably lost jobs for a fourth month and the jobless rate rose to 5.2 percent this month, the highest level in three years, economists forecast a May 2 report will show.

``The data that came down today shows we're still in the early innings of a slowdown and any recovery will be muted and slower in arriving,'' said Michael Barron, chief executive officer and portfolio manager at Knott Capital Management, which manages $1 billion in Exton, Pennsylvania.

GMAC's Loss

GMAC LLC, the auto and home lender that General Motors Corp. sold to a private equity group, posted a $589 million loss in the first quarter as its Residential Capital LLC mortgage unit posted a $859 million deficit. GM dropped the most in a week, falling 74 cents, or 3.4 percent, to $21.20.

The S&P 500 has climbed 9.2 percent since closing at a 19- month low March 10, helped by earnings from Google Inc., Intel Corp., Boeing Co. and American Express Co. Earnings have topped analysts' estimates at 70 percent of the 267 companies in the index that have reported fist-quarter results so far, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Companies in the index trade for an average 15 times their estimated profit in the next 12 months, the lowest compared with historical earnings since 1990.

Wachovia, Office Depot

Wachovia Corp. added 71 cents to $29.40. Shares of the fourth-largest U.S. bank were upgraded to ``buy'' from ``hold'' by Deutsche Bank AG analysts Mike Mayo and Chris Spahr, who said ``no more capital raises are needed.''

Office Depot Inc. rose $1.04, or 8.7 percent, to $13. The world's second-largest office-supplies retailer said first- quarter profit fell less than analysts estimated.

MasterCard Inc. jumped $31.48, or 13 percent, to $273.98. The world's second-biggest credit-card network said profit more than doubled and exceeded earnings at Visa Inc. as international revenue rose.

About 1.2 billion shares traded on the NYSE, 20 percent less than the three-month daily average.

The Chicago Board Options Exchange Volatility Index, the benchmark for U.S. options prices, increased 3.1 percent to 20.24. The so-called VIX gauges the cost of insuring against declines in the S&P 500.

The Russell 2000 Index, a benchmark for companies with a median market value 95 percent smaller than the S&P 500's, fell 0.9 percent to 718.93. The Dow Jones Wilshire 5000 Index, the broadest measure of U.S. shares, dropped 0.4 percent to 14,032.54. Based on its retreat, the value of stocks decreased by $69.2 billion.

To contact the reporter on this story: Eric Martin in New York at emartin21@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: April 29, 2008 16:53 EDT