NEW YORK >> Wall Street tried but failed today to extend a one-day rebound, succumbing instead to late-afternoon selling on questions about AOL Time Warner's accounting and pessimism about second-quarter earnings reports. Wall Street
resumes its slideAssociated Press
The Dow Jones industrial average had its sixth triple-digit loss in nine sessions, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index closed below 900 for the first time in nearly five years. Analysts said the pullback reflected investors' continuing lack of confidence.
Declining issues led advancers 2 to 1 on the New York Stock Exchange. Volume came to 1.72 billion shares, compared with 1.93 billion shares yesterday. The Dow closed down 132.99, or 1.6 percent, at 8,404.49, after rising as much as 79 points earlier in the day. The Dow has now fallen 975.01 in nine sessions.
The losses were more intense in broader stock indicators. The S&P 500 was down 24.47, or 2.7 percent, at 881.57, its lowest finish since Oct. 27, 1997. The Nasdaq composite index lost 40.30, or 2.4 percent, closing at 1,356.95. The Russell 2000 index fell 12.97 to 396.72.
The price of the Treasury's 10-year note was up 11/16 point today, while its yield fell to 4.59 percent from 4.68 percent late yesterday. Two-year Treasury notes were up 3/16 point and yielded 2.49 percent, down from 2.61 percent yesterday.
All three indexes closed higher yesterday for the first time in nearly two weeks, but analysts weren't surprised that the market faltered.
"The general public hasn't made money in the stock market for two years now, so there is an acceleration of redemptions in mutual funds and stocks as investors switch to other types of investments," said Bill Meade, managing director, RBC Capital Markets.
AOL Time Warner fell 66 cents to $12.45 on a Washington Post story that questioned its bookkeeping practices. AOL Time Warner denied any wrongdoing. Late in the day, the company said chief operating officer Robert Pittman was leaving his post as part of a management shake-up.
Overseas, Japan's Nikkei stock average advanced nearly 2.0 percent. In Europe, Germany's DAX index rose 0.2 percent, Britain's FTSE 100 gained 2.1 percent, and France's CAC-40 increased 2.6 percent.