Stocks Fall On Jobs Data

The report gave investors further confirmation that the economy is slowing, and Friday's Wall Street decline indicated they're concerned that the economy might be moderating too much.

The good news in Friday's report was that the unemployment rate fell to 4.6 percent. But the 51,000 jobs added was well below the 120,000 Wall Street had been expecting.

In the first hour of trading, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 45.78, or 0.39 percent, at 11,820.91 after closing Thursday at 11,866.69, its third straight record high close.

Broader stock indicators were lower Friday. The Standard & Poor's 500 index was down 3.28, or 0.24 percent, at 1,349.94, and the Nasdaq composite index fell 10.49, or 0.45 percent, at 2,295.85. The Dow on Thursday closed at a highest-ever 11,866.69 and set a trading high of 11,870.06.

In corporate news, Micron Technology issued a profit report that disappointed investors and lackluster sales of flash memory chips raised questions about the company's efforts to diversify.

---

On the Net:

New York Stock Exchange: http://www.nyse.com

Nasdaq Stock Market: http://www.nasdaq.com