USA: The Dow drops 245 points; U.S. stocks suffer its biggest loss in more than a month

Record ID: 187053

  • Title: USA: The Dow drops 245 points; U.S. stocks suffer its biggest loss in more than a month
  • Date: 8th January 2009
  • Summary: NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES (FILE) (REUTERS) VARIOUS JOB SEEKERS AT A STATE EMPLOYMENT OFFICE
  • Embargoed: 23rd January 2009 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Usa
  • Country: USA
  • Topics: Finance
  • Reuters ID: LVACYYVFBA836V9LTEA06WIPSK4U
  • Story Text: Stocks suffered their worst decline in more than a month on Wednesday (January 7) after a grim private-sector jobs report coupled with a revenue warning from top chip maker Intel Corp revived deep concerns about the economy.
    Job losses and plans to lay off workers hammered the struggling U.S.
    economy in the final month of 2008, according to private reports that foreshadow grim labor market data from the government on Friday (January 9).
    U.S. private employers shed 693,000 jobs in December, up sharply from the revised 476,000 jobs lost in November and far more than economists estimated, a report by ADP Employer Services said on Wednesday (January 7).
    Separate data also showed planned layoffs at U.S. firms eased in December from the previous month's seven-year high but were up an astounding 275 percent annually as the year-old recession cut a huge swathe of destruction through job market.
    The ADP December U.S. job losses were the highest since the ADP's survey launch in 2001. Economists expect Friday's payrolls report to show 500,000 jobs were cut in December, according to the median of their forecasts in a Reuters poll.

    "This unexpectedly deep plunge by private sector payrolls by way of ADP warns us that the drop by private sector payrolls in December might be even deeper than 600,000. Who knows? It could approach 700,000," said John Lonski, chief economist at Moody's Investor Service.
    The Dow Jones industrial average fell 245.40 points, or 2.71 percent, to 8,769.70. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index dropped 28.05 points, or 3 percent, to 906.65. The Nasdaq Composite Index tumbled 53.32 points, or 3.23 percent, at 1,599.06.
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