NEW YORK: Global equities markets dropped for a fourth day on Friday, with Wall Street again slumping as investors shrugged off economic data showing solid improvement in US labor markets.
US Treasury debt prices rose, while the dollar moved lower.
US stock trading was dogged by worries about Argentina’s debt problems. A US judge criticized Argentina’s decision to default earlier this week and ordered talks between the country and holdout investors to continue.
Confusion over Federal Reserve policy and ongoing tensions in Ukraine and Gaza were also blamed for the US stocks drop.
Stock indices in New York had lost 2 percent on Thursday and posted sharp losses again on Friday before trimming them somewhat in late trading.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 69.93 points or 0.42 percent, to 16,493.37, the SP 500 lost 5.52 points or 0.29 percent, to 1,925.15 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 17.13 points or 0.39 percent, to 4,352.64.
For the week, the Dow was down 2.8 percent and the Nasdaq was down 2.2 percent. The SP lost 2.7 percent, its biggest weekly decline since the week ending June 1, 2012.
Wall Street’s losses may not be finished, according to Nick Sargen, chief economist at Fort Washington Investment Advisors in Cincinnati. “We’re still not cheap by any means, and this could be the start of the 10 percent correction that’s been long overdue,” he said.