Weakening Dollar Worries Investors; Dow Dips in Light Post-Holiday Trading
Stocks fell Friday in light trading, ending a shortened week as the December holiday shopping season began and attention turned to retailers and a steep decline in the dollar against other major currencies.</br></br>The day after Thanksgiving appeared to be a busy one for retailers as shoppers seeking bargains flocked to stores. Without tallies from cash register receipts, however, investors were forced to examine little more than anecdotal evidence as they tried to determine how sales for the holiday season would fare.</br></br>With the stock markets closed Thursday for Thanksgiving and many investors taking a holiday Friday, Wall Street saw a quiet session that closed at 1 p.m.</br></br>The Dow Jones industrial average fell 46.78, to 12,280.17, the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index fell 5.14, to 1,400.95 and the Nasdaq composite fell 5.72, to 2,460.26.</br></br>Richard Sparks, an analyst at Schaeffer's Investment Research, noted stocks pulled off their lows of the session as investors pared concerns about the strength of retail sales and the dollar, though he noted some pessimism remained. "I think those concerns are keeping some traders on the sidelines."