Dow Industrials Slide For Second Day

[Stocks-to-Watch]

It was a bad day on Wall Street, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average ending Thursday in the red for the second straight day.

After a fairly mild start to the trading day, stock indexes plunged in the afternoon, with gold, silver and other commodities getting punished as well*by nervous investors selling*assets amid worries about Europe’s debt woes.

The Dow closed at 11,700 after dropping almost 135 points, or 1.1%. At one point today, the index has fallen 230 points. Meanwhile the Nasdaq Composite fell more than 51 points or 1.96% to 2,588 and the S&P 500 index dropped almost 21 points or 1.6% to 1216.

The price for an ounce of gold fell $53 or 3% to $1,720. Silver prices fell $2.38, or 7%. And oil remained below the $100-a-barrel mark, falling $3.58, or 3.5% to $99.01.

The slide in U.S. equities and commodities came amid worries about escalating yields on euro-area debt, market technicals and debt negotiations in Washington, D.C.*

Closer to home, economic data showed a drop in jobless claims that put last week’s level at a seven-month low, while a central-bank gauge of business activity in the Philadelphia region dropped to a reading of 3.6 for November from 8.7 the month before.

The market was full of stocks that ended the day in the red. Among them, Sears Holdings (SHLD) retreated 3% after the retailer reported larger losses in the third-quarter, and St. Jude Medical (STJ) fell nearly 5%.

There were some big winners. ACCO Brands (ABD) shares climbed 24% on an agreement to merge with MeadWestvaco (MWV) in a deal valued at $860 million. Shares of MeadWestvaco gained 5%.

Children’s Place Retail Stores (PLCE) shares rose 14% after the youth-clothing chain raised its 2011 earnings outlook.

And Zoll Medical (ZOLL) shares jumped 25% after the defibrillator-maker forecast 2012 revenue that beat Wall Street’s estimates.



Original Article Source by Barrons.com