Stocks move lower
on hurricane fears

NEW YORK » An increase in oil prices sent stocks sharply lower yesterday as traders worried about the damage that Hurricane Rita might wreak on Texas refineries.

Stocks slid after oil futures rose as much as $2 a barrel in morning trading. While economists have debated the long-term economic impact of Hurricane Katrina, few have ventured to guess what a hit from another powerful hurricane might mean to long-term oil prices and the economy. Category 5 Rita is expected to make landfall, most likely in Texas, by the weekend.

BP PLC began closing some of its refinery operations yesterday. A barrel of light crude was quoted at $66.80, up 60 cents, in trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

"Hurricane Rita, and its corollary affect on energy prices, is moving the market today, no question about it," said William Hummer, chief economist at Wayne Hummer Investments. "Uncertainty is poison for the market."

Trading was heavy. The Dow fell 103.49, or 0.99 percent, to 10,378.03. Over the last three sessions, the Dow has fallen 263.91, or 2.48 percent. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 11.14, or 0.91 percent, to 1,210.20, and the Nasdaq composite index fell 24.69, or 1.16 percent, to 2,106.64.

Declining issues led advancers 2 to 1 on the New York Stock Exchange, where consolidated volume was 2.55 billion shares, up from 2.31 billion shares at the same time Tuesday.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 10.69, or 1.62 percent, to 649.94

Bonds rose, with the yield on the 10-year Treasury note falling to 4.17 percent from 4.25 percent late Tuesday.

In company news, insurer American International Group Inc. fell $1.11 to $59.40 after it said late Tuesday it expects $1.1 billion in after-tax losses for the third quarter, mainly because of claims from Hurricane Katrina.

The New York Times Co. fell $2.13 to $30 after the newspaper company said late Tuesday its third-quarter earnings would miss estimates by a wide margin and the company would cut 500 jobs.

Shipping company FedEx Corp. rose $6.15 to $83.15 after it said first-quarter profit rose modestly, weighed down by an accounting charge, while revenue showed solid growth as daily package volume expanded. Setting aside a one-time charge from changing its lease accounting, earnings would have been $1.25 per share, well above analysts' estimates.

Avon Products Inc. fell $3.60 to $27 after the company cut its 2005 earnings forecast late Tuesday. Its new forecast is well below both the company's previous forecast and analysts' expectations. Morgan Stanley downgraded the stock to "equal-weight" from "overweight" on the news.