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From Oct 2019 to Oct 2024

By Kate Gibson

U.S. stocks fell at Monday's open, following a three-day run of gains, with investors pulling back ahead of data expected to illustrate declining car sales and slowing construction spending, further fueling anxiety before Friday's jobs report.

"Auto sales, construction spending ... all point to a weaker economic outlook. Friday's jobs report should show non-Farm payrolls down 550,000 and the rate above 7%," said Tom DiGaloma, head of U.S. bond trading at Jefferies & Company Inc.

After closing at an eight-week high Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) fell 63 points to 8,971.69 in early action.

The S&P 500 (SPX) shed 7.01 points to 924.79, and the Nasdaq Composite (RIXF) declined 14.13 points to 1,618.08.

End-of-the-year results from the auto industry were likely to be grim, with car-buying research Web site Edmunds.com looking for Chrysler to tally a 46% sales drop last month, while predicting General Motors Corp. (GM) and Ford Motor Co. will fall 39% and 34%, respectively.

In more downbeat news, the Commerce Department is expected to report another large drop in construction spending for November.

Shares of Apple Inc. (AAPL) gained 3.7% after Chief Executive Steve Jobs said he's undergoing treatment for a hormone imbalance that has caused him to lose weight. Jobs made his comments in an open letter to the Apple community. .

J.P. Morgan raised its rating on Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN) to overweight from neutral. Shares of the online retailer were up 1% Monday morning.

Oil futures gained nearly 2% in early trade, with the contract for February delivery up 76 cents, or 1.5%, to 47.10 a barrel.

The dollar index (DXY), a measure of the greenback against rival currencies, rose 0.2% to 82.83. .

Asian markets shot higher, with Japanese stocks taking the lead.

European shares also gained, with telecom, utility and oil equities among the strongest performers. .

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