Technology Stocks Lead Equity Markets Lower Amid Profit-Taking

Market participants sold technology stocks en masse, leading a decline in the Nasdaq composite index by 1.86%, or 46.67 points, to 2,463.42. The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 71.58 points, to 9,274.12, while the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index lost 11.01 points, to 1,261.99. The sell-off in technology shares was attributed to profit-taking, as analysts cited the start of the Federal Reserve Board's Open Market Committee meeting and rising interest rates as reasons for the decline.

Key Takeaways:

• The Nasdaq composite index fell 46.67 points, or 1.86%, to 2,463.42, with losers outnumbering gainers by a margin of 3 to 2.
• The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 71.58 points, to 9,274.12, while the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index lost 11.01 points, to 1,261.99.
• Microsoft fell for a second day, losing 5 5/16, to 167 5/8, despite a 116% gain over the last year.
• Intel, up 62% over the last year, fell 3 1/4, to 134 5/8, while Cisco Systems, which has seen its price rise 166% over the last 12 months, lost 23 9/64, to 112 25/64.
• Perot Systems, the world's sixth-largest provider of outsourced information technology services, saw its shares surge 27 1/2, to 43 1/2 on the New York Stock Exchange following its initial public offering.

Statistics:

• The Nasdaq composite index suffered its biggest setback of the quarter, with a decline of 46.67 points, or 1.86%.
• The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 71.58 points, to 9,274.12, representing a decline of 0.78%.
• Microsoft's 5 5/16 point loss represented a decline of 2.96% in the stock's value.
• Intel's 3 1/4 point loss represented a decline of 2.35% in the stock's value.
• Cisco Systems' 23 9/64 point loss represented a decline of 2.15% in the stock's value.

Sources:

• Bloomberg News
• Reuters
• Dow Jones
• Associated Press
• T. Rowe Price Associates
• Lehman Brothers
• Scudder Kemper Investments