Dow Reverses Direction, Falls 10.19 Points to 2,925
Stock prices fell today, countering a recent rally that produced record highs.
The Dow Jones average of 30 industrials declined 10.19 to 2,925.00.
Declining issues edged out advances on the New York Stock Exchange, with 755 up, 811 down and 470 unchanged.
Big Board volume totaled 199.72 million shares, against 175.52 million in the previous session.
The NYSE’s composite index fell .28 to 199.93.
At the American Stock Exchange, the market value index declined .57 to 363.83.
Analysts attributed the decline to scattered selling to take profits after a runup in the Dow Jones industrial average of more than 10% since late April.
A sharp drop in crude oil prices and a weaker bond market contributed to the sell-off. Bond prices rose sharply and interest rates declined--good for stocks--in a rally late last week.
Declines in several major oil and oilfield industry stocks because of lower oil prices offset gains in financial issues. Airlines, benefitting from the potential for cheaper jet fuel, also fared well.
But some market players predicted that the decline was just a pause before a further jump.
Money managers with large cash reserves when the market began moving upward have bought stock in recent days, boosting the market to its new highs. That enthusiasm was not seen as waning today.
Bond prices dipped lower in early trading today in the absence of any major news to move the market.
The Treasury’s benchmark 30-year bond was off 3/16 point, or about $1.87 per $1,000 face amount, at midday. Its yield, which moves in the opposite direction from its price, rose to 8.44% from 8.42% late Monday.
Analysts said there were no developments to affect trading.
The market had moved higher earlier in the session in anticipation of lower energy prices but retreated although crude oil futures were down at midday. The July contract for West Texas Intermediate, the benchmark grade of U.S. crude, was down 59 cents at $16.55 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Yields on three-month Treasury bills were unchanged at 7.93%.
