Tech Stocks' Late Drop Dampens Dow's Day
NEW YORK, Sept. 15ÛÓA sell-off in technology shares, triggered by an announcement of delays in the rollout of MicrosoftÛªs Windows 98 software, undermined a rising stock market today as sentiment turned bearish in the final hour of trading.</br></br>The Dow Jones industrial average finished 21.83 points lower at 7721.14, erasing a nearly 52-point gain from earlier in the day. Broad market indexes also weakened late in the day.</br></br>ÛÏIn the last hour or so, Microsoft fell and that had a negative impact on the entire tech sector and then on much of the market,Û said Brian Belski, a technical analyst at Dain Bosworth Inc. in Minneapolis.</br></br>Microsoft shares started the day lower because of assertions in a BarronÛªs article that the software giantÛªs stock was overvalued and that fire company may have a hard time dominating the industry in the ftiture. But the big decline came at midafternoon, when Microsoft said its Windows 98 software will come out three months later than expected.</br></br>Microsoftfell 7%, to 130-11/16, on the news. Other technology stocks also slumped, including Intel, down 2-3/16 at 92-1/16, and Cisco Systems, down 214 at 69%, both on the Nasdaq Stock Market IBM fell 114, to 96%, on the New York Stock Exchange.