Stock Market Slumps on Consumer Spending Concerns

Posted on Jun 11, 2010

AP / Seth Wenig

Daily grind: Trader Kevin K. Lodewick works on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange last month.

The news from Wall Street wasn’t great as the week wrapped up and trading shut down Friday, although it wasn’t bad across the board. The stock market took a tumble, registering ongoing worries about consumer spending trends, but hey, at least the technology sector was hanging in there.  —KA

The Wall Street Journal:

The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 48 points, or 0.5%, to 10124.65, hurt by declines in its consumer-oriented components. Home Depot dropped 2.4%, while Procter & Gamble fell 2% and Coca-Cola fell 1.2%.

The S&P 500 was off 0.3%. But the Nasdaq Composite Index managed a 0.3% gain.

The Commerce Department said retail sales fell 1.2% in May as consumers slowed their spending on cars, clothing and other goods. Economists were expecting a 0.2% increase. More encouragingly, the Reuters/University of Michigan consumer-sentiment survey rose to 75.5, above the 74 reading expected by economists.

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