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Wall Street Slides On Employment Data, Credit Rating Concerns
May 21, 2009 4:50 p.m. EST
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Mitchell Jaworski - AHN Reporter
New York, NY (AHN) - U.S. markets opened Thursday much lower after the government released data pointing toward further weakness in the job market. That data was followed by worries over the nation's credit rating after the credit outlook was for the U.K. was downgraded by Standard & Poor's.
Before the opening bell, the Labor Department said new jobless claims for the week ended May 16 fell by 12,000 to 631,000. However, economists expected a decline to 625,000.
Continuing claims rose to nearly 6.7 million, setting a record high for the 16th straight week as the number of Americans collecting unemployment continues to stay at the highest level on records dating back to 1967.
Investors' confidence also received a shake after news hit that Standard & Poor's downgraded the credit rating of the United Kingdom to negative from stable, leading to speculation if the U.S. would suffer the same fate.
The move could cause difficulty for the British to borrow cheaply and possibly lead to future tax hikes.
The Dow Jones Industrial average opened nearly 100 points lower and was pressured all day, finished down 130 points or 1.5 percent. 23 of 30 Dow components finished the session lower.
Industrial names weighed on the Dow most with Alcoa and Caterpillar down more than 4 percent each.
The S&P 500 fell 15 points or 1.7 percent as selling was broad-based with 85 percent of stocks within the index finishing lower Thursday.
Nine of 10 major economic sectors finished the day lower, with financials posting the only gain, up 0.2 percent.
The tech heavy Nasdaq Composite slipped 33 points or 1.9 percent. Big-cap tech kept pace as the Nasdaq 100 was off by 1.9 percent on the day.
Crude oil took a break from its recent rally, falling 99 cents a barrel to settle at $61.05 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
In economic news, the Conference Board said its leading economic indicators index rose 1 percent in April, up from a 2 percent decline in March. The move marked the largest one-month advance since November 2005.
The decline in manufacturing activity in the Philadelphia region slowed as the Philly Fed Index produced a minus 22.6 reading for May, better than the minus 24.4 in the prior month.
On the corporate front, Barnes & Nobles posted a smaller than expected first quarter loss of 4 cents a share and raised its outlook for the full-year.
Elsewhere, General Motors has reached a tentative deal with the United Auto Workers union to cut labor cost and adjust the method of funding a union-retiree healthcare fund.
There are no economic data releases scheduled for Friday.
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