Dow slips 6.33
Associated PressNEW YORK - Stocks struggled to another loss today as fears of higher interest rates and soaring bond yields weighed on investors. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 6.33 to close at 10,707.70.
Broader stock indicators also were lower. The Standard & Poor's 500 fell 2.49 to 1,297.80. The Nasdaq composite index fell 28.99, or 1.14 percent, to 2,518.98.
Decliners beat advancers by a 3-to-2 margin on the New York Stock Exchange, with 1,798 down, 1,190 up and 533 unchanged. NYSE volume totaled 681.29 million shares vs. 701.66 million Friday.
The NYSE composite index fell 0.58 to 610.46; the American Stock Exchange composite index slipped 0.05 to 777.87; and the Russell 2000 index fell 2.15 to 425.89.
With little fresh economic news or corporate mergers to stimulate trading on a summer Monday, prices stalled in a narrow range.
Arthur Hogan, chief market analyst at Jefferies & Co., said the market is unlikely to break out of its fitful trading range until the Fed's Open Market Committee meets Aug. 24. "Their move is in the bag," he said, referring to an expected quarter-point rate hike. "But until they make that move, we'll see a lot more of this sideways action."
While stock prices shifted gears over the course of the day, bond prices plunged. The 30-year Treasury fell 22/32, or $6.88 per $1,000 face amount, to a price of 86 26/32. The yield rose 6 basis points to 6.23 percent - the highest level since Nov. 4, 1997. Yields on two-year notes, among the most sensitive to Fed rate policy, rose 9 basis points to a 20-month high of 5.77 percent.
With yields rising, bonds are becoming an attractive, less volatile alternative to stocks.