U.S. Stocks Fall as Internet Shares Tumble Amid Shutdown

Bloomberg (9/10) -- U.S. stocks fell, giving the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index its biggest two-day loss since June, as concern grew that a deadlock among U.S. lawmakers over the debt limit could lead to a government default. An index of Internet stocks tumbled the most in almost two years, sinking 4.1 percent. Facebook Inc. and Yahoo! Inc. lost at least 3.5 percent. Xerox Corp. slid 2.5 percent after announcing the U.S. has been probing the accounting practices of its outsourcing division. Alcoa (AA) Inc. gained 1.8 percent in late trading after reporting third-quarter earnings that surpassed forecasts. The S&P 500 fell 1.2 percent to 1,655.45 at 4 p.m. in New York, the lowest since Sept. 6. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 159.71 points, or 1.1 percent, to 14,776.53. The Nasdaq Composite Index tumbled 2 percent to 3,694.83. About 6.9 billion shares changed hands on U.S. exchanges, nearly 20 percent higher than the three-month average. “The market is going to start to push the government,” Rick Fier, director of equity trading at Conifer Securities LLC in New York, said in an interview. “The longer it drags on, the more uncomfortable everyone gets because we will not rally until something gets done. Get out now and wait for the storm to pass to get back in.” The S&P 500 slumped 0.9 percent yesterday to a four-week low as lawmakers remained deadlocked over extending the nation’s debt limit to avoid a default. Its two-day slide of 2.1 percent is the biggest since June 21. The gauge has fallen 4.1 percent since its latest record on Sept. 18.