Stocks Turn Mixed After Early Decline
The major market barometers were mixed at midmorning.
The Dow was down 55 to 10,142.
Union Carbide
(UK)
was the biggest drag on the Dow. It was off 3 to 48 3/8, and accounted for 13 points in the average's decline.
The S&P 500 was down 1 to 1343. The Nasdaq Comp was up 12 to 2585.
The small-cap
Russell 2000
up fractionally at 400.
TheStreet.com Internet Sector
index was up 15 to 726.
TheStreet.com E-Commerce Index
was up 4 to 133.
The 30-year Treasury bond was up 6/32 to 97 12/32, yielding 5.43%.
On the economic front, the overall
Producer Price Index
rose 0.2% while the core PPI, which excludes food and energy prices, was unchanged, the
Labor Department
reported.
Scott Curtis, senior equity trader at
Brown Brothers Harriman
, said he thought today's market decline was just a pause in an ongoing rally.
The fundamentals are still intact and today's PPI report was helpful for stocks, Curtis noted.
Transportation, oil-service and gold mining stocks were notable gainers.
The
Dow Jones Transportation Average
was up 1%, while the
Philadelphia Stock Exchange Oil Service Index
was up fractionally. The
Philadelphia Stock Exchange Gold and Silver Index
has jumped 2%.
Brokerage stocks continued on their torrid pace. The stocks have surged lately on expectations that brokers next week will report strong earnings. A host of brokerage firms are slated to report quarterly results next week. The
American Stock Exchange Broker/Dealer Index
was up 3%.
On the
New York Stock Exchange
, decliners were beating advancers 1,369 to 1,100 on 197 million shares. On the Nasdaq, losers were leading winners 1,542 to 1,540 on 313 million shares.
On the NYSE, 42 issues had set new 52-week highs while 31 had touched new lows. On the Nasdaq, 72 issues had set new highs while new lows totaled 35.
On the Big Board,
Compaq
(CPQ)
was most active, with 5 million shares changing hands. It was up 5/8 to 30 1/4.
On the Nasdaq,
Dell
(DELL) - Get Report
was most active, with 8 million shares changing hands. It was down 1/2 to 44 7/16.
9:59 a.m.: Stocks Slightly Lower After Thursday's Record Closes
In the wake of
yesterday's record closes by the
Dow Jones Industrial Average
,
S&P 500
and
Nasdaq Composite Index
, the market's major gauges were slightly softer early on.
The Dow was down 6 to 10,192. The S&P 500 was down fractionally at 1344. The Nasdaq Comp was down 1 to 2573. The
Russell 2000
was down fractionally at 400.
TheStreet.com Internet Sector
index was up 7 to 717.
TheStreet.com E-Commerce Index
was down fractionally at 128.
The 30-year bond was up 7/32 to 97 12/32, yielding 5.43%. The overall
Producer Price Index
rose 0.2% in March, while excluding food and energy costs, it was unchanged.
Most Up at Open -- NYSE
Sprint (FON) , up 3 3/4 to 112 1/2
.
Most Up at Open -- Nasdaq
theglobe.com (TGLO) , up 17 to 76
: The company set a 2-for-1 stock split.
Most Down at Open -- NYSE
Wal-Mart (WMT) - Get Report, down 1 3/4 to 100 1/2
.
Most Down at Open -- Nasdaq
Vitesse Semiconductor (VTSS) , down 7 7/8 to 49 3/4
.
