US stocks dragged down by jobs data

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IANS | 05 May, 2012
US stocks tumbled Friday after the highly-anticipated government monthly jobs report came in weaker than expected.

According to the Labor Department, the economy only added 115,000 new jobs in April, much less than the market expectation of 170,000, Xinhua reported.

The unemployment rate fell to 8.1 percent, lower than the median estimate of 8.2 percent. However, the improvement was achieved because about 342,000 people dropped out of the labor force and were no longer counted in the number.

The decline sent the broader S&P 500 below its 50-day moving average for the first time since April 25, which spurred more selling in the market.

In midday trading, the Dow Jones industrial average fell 153.33 points, or 1.16 percent, to 13,053.26. The Standard & Poor's 500 dropped 21.03 points, or 1.51 percent, to 1,370.54. The Nasdaq Composite Index tumbled 59.78 points, or 1.98 percent, to 2,964.52.