FINANCIAL MARKETS : Stocks : Dow Off 8.80 as Traders Await Report on Jobs

NEW YORK â€”  The stock market recorded another small decline Thursday, continuing its weeklong pullback as traders awaited the government’s monthly employment report.

The Dow Jones index of 30 industrials, down 25.10 points from Monday through Wednesday, dropped 8.80 to 2,384.90.

Declining issues slightly outnumbered advances in nationwide trading of New York Stock Exchange-listed stocks, with 667 up, 728 down and 555 unchanged.

Volume on the floor of the Big Board came to 153.13 million shares, down from 171.69 million in the previous session. Nationwide, consolidated volume in NYSE-listed issues, including trades in those stocks on regional exchanges and in the over-the-counter market, totaled 181.21 million shares.

Wall Street’s attention has focused all week on today’s scheduled report from the Labor Department on the employment situation for April.

Analysts expect the data to serve as evidence of whether the economy continued to slow last month after giving evidence of losing some momentum in the first quarter.

Hopes have been increasing on Wall Street that the Federal Reserve is succeeding in its campaign to cool down inflation without tightening credit so much as to cause a recession.

But that belief was challenged at the start of this week when a trade association of corporate purchasing managers reported that business activity picked up in April.

Advance estimates call for the employment report to show an increase of 225,000 to 250,000 in non-farm payrolls.

The Wilshire index of 5,000 equities closed at 3,043.377, down 1.302.

Large blocks of 10,000 or more shares traded on the NYSE totaled 3,389, compared to 3,575 on Wednesday.

Bond prices were also at a near stand-still as traders stayed on the sidelines in anticipation the employment figures.

The Treasury’s benchmark 30-year bond was up 3/32 point, or nearly $1 per $1,000 face amount. Its yield, which moves in an opposite direction from its price, fell to 8.99% from 9% late Wednesday.

In London, share prices were sharply higher, with prices of selected issues marked up as a bit of institutional buying interest caught market makers short of stock. The Financial Times-stock exchange 100-share index was up 17.4 points at 2,123.1, its best level of the day. At its lowest, the index was up 10.6 points shortly after the opening.

In Japan, financial markets and many businesses were closed because of a national holiday.

Commodities

Cocoa futures tumbled to new lows for the current contracts in New York, as traders sold heavily after London futures plunged to 13-year lows.

Except for the spot May contract, all cocoa contracts dropped to new lows on the Coffee, Sugar & Cocoa Exchange of New York. Active July cocoa ended down $44 at $1,176 a ton after hitting $1,170 in early trading.

Crude oil prices rose on news from London that the British North Sea pipeline, closed April 18 after an explosion at a pumping platform, will not resume pumping until May 26. The pipeline, carrying almost 500,000 barrels of oil a day, was expected to reopen in mid-May.

West Texas Intermediate crude, the U.S. benchmark grade, surged 48 cents to $20.58 a barrel for June delivery. June unleaded gasoline rose 0.23 cents to 69.62 cents a gallon and June heating oil rose 0.73 cents to 48.59 cents a gallon.

Currency

The dollar finished at varied levels against major foreign currencies as Federal Reserve intervention and a comment by the central bank’s vice chairman sent mixed signals to the markets.

Gold prices ended with minor losses in U.S. trading after moving ahead overseas. Republic National Bank of New York quoted an ounce of gold bullion at $376.70 as of 4 p.m. EDT, down from Wednesday’s late bid of $377.40.

Late dollar rates in New York, compared to Wednesday rates, included: 1.69105 Swiss francs, up from 1.68705; 1.18305 Canadian dollars, down from 1.18415; 6.4005 French francs, up from 6.3905, and 1,384.50 Italian lire, up from 1,383.05.

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