Stocks fall on mortgage concerns
Stocks slid as investors, securing positions before the second half of the year begins, sold off due to rising oil prices and lingering worries about subprime mortgage lending troubles.
The erratic day capped off a strong second quarter for Wall Street, which pushed the Dow Jones industrial average up more than 1,000 points over the last three months.
The stock market initially rose on Friday, encouraged by Commerce Department data that fits well with the Federal Reserve’s assessment that the economy appears to be growing moderately and that inflation, while still a concern, seems to be easing.
The reports said May construction spending rose by the largest amount in nearly one and a half years, and consumer spending increased for the second month in a row. The data also indicated that “core” prices, which strip out food and energy, moderated to 1.9% over the last 12 months - the lowest year-over-year rate since 2004.
But the stock market could not hold on to gains, as oil prices surged above 70 dollars a barrel and jitters about subprime lending escalated. Last week, Bear Stearns & Cos. had to bail out a hedge fund with investments tied to subprime loans. The stock fell nearly 3% Friday, and other financial companies followed.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 13.66, or 0.10%, to 13,408.62, after swinging dramatically higher and lower over the course of the day. The index rose 1,054.27 points, or 8.53%, during the second quarter, and hit its most recent record high on June 4.
Broader stock indicators also dipped today. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index fell 2.36, or 0.16%, to 1,503.35, and the Nasdaq composite index fell 5.14, or 0.20%, to 2,603.23.
The S&P rose 82.49 points, or 5.81%, in the second quarter, during which it reached record closing levels for the first time since March 2000. The Nasdaq rose 181.59 points, or 7.50%.
Bonds rose on heightened fears of terrorist activity in Great Britain. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note fell to 5.04% from 5.11% late on Thursday. The dollar slipped against most other major currencies, while gold prices edged higher.
The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 5.33, or 0.64%, to 833.70. It rose 4.12% in the second quarter. Declining issues outpaced advancers by about 9 to 7 on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume came to 1.66 billion shares, up from 1.49 billion shares on Thursday.