Stocks drop amid manufacturing weakness
Associated Press
NEW YORK — Wall Street skidded lower yesterday, after a weaker-than-expected reading on the manufacturing sector and a spike in oil prices to $100 a barrel triggered concerns of a further slowdown in the overall economy.
The major indexes each lost more than 1 percent, with the Dow Jones industrials giving up more than 200 points.
The Institute for Supply Management's report that its manufacturing index fell to 47.7 percent for December from 50.8 percent in November raised concerns that the economy could be slowing at a quicker pace than some investors had estimated. The reading below 50 signals economic contraction.
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