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Dow Off Over 300 Points Amid Job Jitters

Published: Thursday, 4 Sep 2008 | 3:49 PM ET

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By: Cindy Perman
CNBC.com

Disappointing stats on the job market added another layer of anxiety to a market already worried about a global slowdown, which sent stocks spiraling.

All three major indexes slipped back into bear-market territory, more than 20 percent below their October highs.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbled more than 300 points, or nearly 3 percent. (Track all of the Dow 30 stocks here.) The S&P 500 and Nasdaq also declined.

Major U.S. Indexes

.DJIA

.NCOMP

.SPX

Initial jobless claims rose by 15,000 last week, snapping a three-week declining streak. Economists had expected claims to hold steady.

This followed a report from ADP payroll service that private employers cut 33,000 jobs from their payrolls in August. That was just slightly more than the 30,000 drop economists had expected.

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The employment reports rattled the market's cage more than usual because Friday is the big August jobs report and investors are worried about what they might hear. Economists expect to see nonfarm payrolls shrink by 75,000.

"Although some of the recent increase in claims reflects technical factors—claims had been around 370k for months until they began to spike in the middle of July—the increase almost certainly reflects deterioration in the labor market," Tony Crescenzi of Miller Tabak wrote in a note to clients. "This deterioration will likely be evident in upcoming employment news."

(Worried about your own job? Click here to find out what sectors are most at risk.)

Upticks in service-sector activity and U.S. worker productivity, good signs for U.S. companies amid the economic slump, did little to console the market.

Adding to the selling pressure were comments from Bill Gross, manager of the world's biggest bond fund, that the government should give the Treasury department the right to buy debt and other assets to stave off a financial crisis. The Pimco chief said he and other big investors are avoiding buying bank debt until the Treasury steps in.

Crude oil [US@CL.1 Loading... () ] dropped nearly $1.50, settling at $107.89 a barrel, despite supplies being drawn down last week. Crude supplies dropped by 1.9 million barrels last week. Analysts had expected the supply to rise by 200,000 barrels. The hurricane watch continues with Hanna and Ike looming on the horizon.

The dollar hit its highest level against the euro this year after the European Central Bank cut its outlook for euro-zone growth.

Boeing shares [BA Loading... () ] skidded after the aerospace giant's largest labor union rejected the company's proposed contract and voted to go on strike.

Retailers were largely in the red after the release of August same-store sales reports.

Wal-Mart [WMT Loading... () ] hit it out of the park for the back-to-school season, reporting same-store sales rose 3 percent, about double what analysts had expected.

Wal-Mart shares rose 1.5 percent, making it the top gainer on the Dow.

Department stores including JCPenney [JCP Loading... () ] and Kohl's [KSS Loading... () ] reported sales fell but beat expectations.

But there were misses across the board, from luxury retailers to teen retailers — even wholesale warehouse club Costco [COST Loading... () ].

Two homebuilders posted earnings but the results were as different as a Victorian and a high rise.

(When should you move into homebuilder stocks? Click on the video at left.)

Shares of Hovnanian Enterprises [HOV Loading... () ] plunged after the company missed forecasts by a long shot. Toll Brothers shares [TOL Loading... () ] were flat to slightly higher as the company turned in a loss that was half of what analysts had expected and sounded a slight note of optimism.

A day earlier, Home Depot's [HD Loading... () ] CEO said the housing sector will likely remain under pressure through early 2009 but that the end is in sight.

Speculation over the future of Lehman Brothers [LEH Loading... () ] continued to mount, with the UK bank HSBC being tagged as a possible bidder. However, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group rejected a media report that it was considering taking a stake in the troubled investment bank. A day earlier, there were reports that the much-talked about possibility of a Korean bank buying into Lehman was on thin ice.