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NEW YORK - Stock prices were mixed today, as investors digested the dual effects of modest inflation brought about by a cooling economy. The Dow Jones industrial average closed down 58.61 at 11,008.39. Dow falls 58.6
Associated Press
Broader stock indicators were mixed. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 4.58 at 1,479.85, and the Nasdaq composite index finished up 9.54 at 3,861.20.
Advancers led decliners by a 4-to-3 margin with 1,594 up, 1,243 down and 494 unchanged on the New York Stock Exchange. Volume was 934.42 million shares, up from 895.93 million yesterday pace. The NYSE composite index slipped 1.76 to 666.25; the American Stock Exchange index dropped 4.70 to 908.08; but the Russell 2000 rose 2.81 at 512.74.
The 30-year Treasury bond's price fell 1/2 point, or $5 per $1,000 in face value, and yielded 5.74 percent, up from 5.71 percent late yesterday.
A selloff in retail stocks helped drag down the Dow index. Home Depot and and Wal-Mart Stores both fell. Investors sold retail stocks in the fear that second-half profits could fall short of expectations if consumer spending eases in step with the Federal Reserve Board's policy of cooling the economy to fight inflation. The Labor Department's Consumer Price Index showed that inflation rose a mild 0.2 percent last month, providing further evidence that the Fed's strategy to slow the economy may be working. If the Fed, which has raised interest rates six times in the past 14 months, feels their economic tightening plan is working, interest rates will likely be left unchanged at the Fed's next meeting Tuesday.