U.S. Markets End Month Weak On Economic Data

New York, NY (AHN) - U.S. markets sold off into the holiday weekend after the Commerce Department reported that personal incomes fell in July. July personal income, reported before the open, fell 0.7 percent.

The drop was much larger than the 0.1 percent economists had expected and marked the steepest monthly decline in nearly three years. The weak economic data set the tone early as all three major indices opened Friday lower.

The Dow Jones Industrial average fell 171 points or 1.46 percent. All 30 Dow components finished the session lower. General Motors was the biggest Dow laggard, down 3.3 percent.

The S&P 500 fell nearly 18 points or 1.37 percent as many of the major economic sectors closed Friday down 1 percent or more. The tech stocks within the S&P 500 weighed most on the index, down 2 percent on the session. With general weakness in the tech arena, the Nasdaq Composite shed 44 points or 1.83 percent.

The earnings miss from Dell Inc. after Thursday's close set the negative tone for tech stocks. The semiconductor companies, many of whom supply Dell with equipment, saw their stocks fall on the news as well. The semiconductor sector lost 2.7 percent on Friday.

Oil had yet another volatile session, trading as high as 2.7 percent before settling in at $115.65, down a mere 13 cents a barrel. Even with the hurricane threats, oil finished with just a modest 0.9 percent gain for the week.

Decliners outpaced advancers by nearly two to one on the New York Stock Exchange on a light volume day of 959.1 million shares. Friday marks the 10th straight day the NYSE failed to break a billion shares traded. August is usually a light volume month, but the past week is slow even by those standards.

For the week, the Dow Jones Industrials fell nearly 1 percent while the S&P 500 lost 1.18 percent and the Nasdaq Composite shed 3.47 percent. However, all three major indices were able to post gains for the month of August.

The markets are closed Monday, Sept. 1 to celebrate the Labor Day holiday and re-open on Tuesday, Sept. 2.