Dow at 10,275, down 108 points.
NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks dipped Wednesday after a disappointing
report on the jobs market renewed concern about the economy.
Treasury yields sank to new lows as investors sought safety and
anticipated more stimulus measures from the Federal Reserve.
Payroll company ADP said private employers cut jobs in September
for the first time in seven months. Investors are seeing a silver
lining in the news, however, hoping that it could help push the
Federal Reserve to take more action to get the U.S. economy going
next month, including stepping up its purchases of bonds.
“It’s just a matter of when and how much,” Christian Hviid, chief
market strategist at Genworth Financial Asset Management, said of
the Fed’s likely plans to buy bonds. “The motivation is to keep
(interest) rates low.”
Gold reached another high and the dollar slumped further against
other currencies on anticipation that U.S. interest rates could
head even lower if the Fed moves aggressively to buy bonds and take
other measures to encourage borrowing.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 3 points in afternoon
trading, but broader indexes dropped and falling stocks outpaced
those that climbed. The yield on the two-year Treasury note touched
a record low 0.38 percent, and the yield on the 10-year note fell
to 2.39 percent. The 10-year yield touched its lowest level since
January 2009 when the country was mired in a recession.
