By Kristina Peterson U.S. stocks moved deeper into the red Friday as weak monthly jobs data and a slide in factory orders fueled worries over a slowdown in the U.S. economic recovery. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) fell 94 points, or 0.9%, to 9,637, in recent trading, having flitted between small losses and gains for much of the day. Among the measure's decliners, Bank of America Corp. (BAC) fell 1.5%, DuPont (DD) dropped 1.6% and Walt Disney Co. (DIS) dropped 1.8%. Disney's drop came after the entertainment giant said it bought the maker of the popular Tap Tap Revenge game for Apple Inc. (AAPL) mobile devices such as the iPhone. The Nasdaq Composite Index (RIXF) fell 0.8% to 2,084. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index (SPX) shed 0.8% to 1,018, weighed by its consumer discretionary sector, as investors worried about how the drop in nonfarm payrolls might weigh on consumer and business spending. International Game Technology (IGT) slid 3.9%, Wynn Resorts Ltd. (WYNN) fell 2.9% and Office Depot Inc. (ODP) slipped 2.2%. Investors largely viewed the government's monthly jobs data as a signal of continued weakness in the labor market, even though the jobless rate edged down to 9.5% in June from 9.7% the previous month, better than the increase to 9.8% economists were expected. However, investors noted that much of the decline could be attributed to workers ceasing their search for a job as the civilian labor force participation rate fell 0.3 percentage point to 64.7%. Nonfarm payrolls fell by 125,000 last month, with only 83,000 private-sector jobs added. Economists were expecting payrolls to drop by a more modest 110,000 in June. Nevertheless, the drop in nonfarm payrolls was smaller than many investors had feared, limiting the market's moves. "We have really seen a set of reports over the last month indicating that the global economy has hit a soft spot, so there was some chance this was going to be a real disappointing number and we dodged that bullet," said Jim McDonald, chief investment strategist at Northern Trust Global Investments. "This shows an economy that is still growing, but at a disappointing pace." Stocks have been hit hard this week, ending the second quarter with a thud and starting the third on shaky ground as other indicators of economic activity, including a private sector jobs report from Automatic Data Processing (ADP) fueled concerns about the sustainability of the global recovery. Other data showed U.S. factory orders declined in May, posting the largest drop in 14 months as transportation related orders tumbled. The dollar fell against the euro, reflecting the weakness in the jobs data, while, Treasurys and gold also lost ground. In individual stocks, AT&T (T) was down 0.5%, after the telecommunications giant announced a preliminary settlement of class-action lawsuits related to the billing services of the former AT&T Wireless Services that could cost the company tens of millions of dollars. Shares of rival Verizon Communications (VZ) rose 1.9%. The health-care sector led to the upside, boosted by a 1.6% increase in Eli Lilly (LLY) after the drug-making giant said it will buy closely held Alnara Pharmaceuticals, a company focused on developing treatments for metabolic diseases.
