Stocks fell Friday, again led by technology shares, as investors bet that the strong U.S. economic growth seen in the fourth quarter of 2009 cannot be sustained. The Dow industrials and Standard & Poor's 500 closed at the lowest point since December 6, and the Nasdaq at its lowest level since November 30. Stocks rose in the morning on a stronger-than-expected U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) report, but the concerns of the last two weeks resurfaced as the session continued. Last week's sell-off was sparked by worries about China's bank reserves and the Obama administration's plan to restrict trading by big banks. U.S. GDP grew at a 5.7 percent annual rate in the fourth quarter, more than double the pace it grew in the third quarter, the government reported. The U.S. dollar gained versus the euro and the yen. Light sweet crude oil for February delivery fell 75 cents to $72.89 on the New York Mercantile Exchange after initially rising on the U.S. GDP report. Gold fell 60 cents to $1,083 an ounce. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 53.13, or 0.5 percent, to 10,067.33. Intel, IBM, and Hewlett-Packard were among the big decliners. Microsoft reported higher quarterly sales and profits that beat estimates, but its shares fell 4 percent in the big technology sell-off. The broader S&P 500 index fell 10.66, or 1 percent, to 1,073.87. The technology-heavy Nasdaq composite index fell 31.65, or 1.45 percent, to 2,147.35. Amazon.com reported higher quarterly sales and profits that surpassed estimates, but its shares fell 1 percent. Apple was another big technology decliner. The New York Stock Exchange composite index fell 73.21 to 5,883.78. The American Stock Exchange composite index fell 4.63 to 1,796.33. And the Russell 2000 index fell 5.89 to 602.04.
