Most U.S. Stocks Decline, Led by Consumer, Automaker Shares

Jan. 3 (Bloomberg) -- Most U.S. stocks fell, led by retailers and carmakers, after a weakening job market and falling auto sales increased concern that consumer spending will slow.

Walgreen Co. dropped after the largest U.S. drugstore chain reported lower December sales than some analysts estimated. General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co., the biggest U.S. automakers, retreated after sales slipped. Monster Worldwide Inc., the largest provider of job listings, decreased after reporting a decline in its employment index for December.

About three stocks fell for every two that rose on the New York Stock Exchange. The S&P 500 was little changed at 1,447.17. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 12.76 to 13,056.72. The Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 6.95, or 0.3 percent, to 2,602.68.

Companies added 40,000 jobs last month, down from the previous month's 173,000 increase, ADP Employer Services said. The Labor Department said the total number of people collecting unemployment insurance rose to the most since October 2005. A separate Labor Department report tomorrow may show the highest unemployment rate in two years.

``The jobs report certainly wasn't robust,'' said Dean Gulis, who helps manage $3 billion at Loomis Sayles & Co. in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. ``I don't think there should be any surprise at weakness in the consumer discretionary sector.''

Walgreen decreased $2.28 to $35.06, the lowest since August 2004. The largest U.S. drugstore chain by revenue said generic drugs cut December pharmacy sales at stores open at least a year by 4.4 percentage points.

CVS, GM

CVS Caremark Corp. declined the most since November 2006, losing $2.58, or 6.6 percent, to $36.77. December sales were lower than it expected, the company said.

General Motors Corp. had the second-biggest decline in the Dow Jones Industrial Average, sliding 49 cents, or 2 percent, to $23.92. GM's U.S. sales of cars and light trucks dropped 4.4 percent in December from a year earlier. Chief Executive Officer Rick Wagoner said the U.S. economy may be a ``risk'' to industry sales in 2008.

Ford dropped 15 cents to $6.45 after saying it expected a ``challenging'' U.S. economy in 2008. Ford's December sales fell to 212,094 vehicles from 233,621, including reductions of 8.4 percent for cars and 9.5 percent for trucks.

Monster Worldwide dropped the most in the S&P 500 after reporting a sequential decline of 7.7 percent in its employment index for December. The record drop suggests that a ``material deterioration in U.S. online recruitment activity is underway,'' said Tim Boyd, an analyst at American Technology Research. Monster fell $2.70, or 8.5 percent, to $28.93.

Homebuilders Fall

Homebuilders fell to the lowest in a month, dropping 4.3 percent. Lennar Corp., the largest, lost 48 cents to $16.72. Pulte Homes Inc., the second biggest, slid 64 cents to $9.78.

Monsanto Co. rose $9.65, or 8.7 percent, to $121.12. The world's largest seed producer said increased sales in Latin America boosted results. Net income climbed to 46 cents a share, beating the 35-cent average estimate of 10 analysts polled by Bloomberg.

Monsanto led a gauge of companies that produce commodities to a 1.5 percent gain, the steepest among 10 industries in the S&P 500.

Exxon Mobil Corp. added 32 cents to $93.83 and Chevron Corp. gained $1.15 to $94.61. Crude oil for February delivery traded at $99.18 a barrel in New York after touching $100 yesterday for the first time since trading began in 1983.

State Street Corp. climbed $6.49, or 8.2 percent, to $85.37, the second-steepest advance in the S&P 500. The world's largest money manager for institutions said 2007 operating profit exceeded analysts' estimates.

Jobless Claims

Newmont Mining Corp., the world's second-biggest gold producer, increased $1.42 to $53.81. Gold approached a record high on speculation rising commodity costs and a weakening dollar will boost demand for an inflation hedge.

The number of Americans filing first-time claims for unemployment benefits fell last week, a government report showed. Initial jobless claims decreased to 336,000 in the week that ended Dec. 29 from a two-year high of 357,000 the prior week, the Labor Department said. Still, they remained at a level that suggests the labor market was weakening into the new year.

The Labor Department's employment report tomorrow may show U.S. hiring growth slowed in December, economists surveyed by Bloomberg said. Payrolls grew by 70,000, according to the average estimate, after an increase of 94,000 in the previous month. The jobless rate probably rose to 4.8 percent, matching the highest in two years, from 4.7 percent in November.

The Russell 2000 Index, a benchmark for companies with a median market value of $569 million, dropped 1.1 percent to 745.01. The Dow Jones Wilshire 5000 Index, the broadest measure of U.S. shares, fell 0.2 percent to 14,587.91. Based on its decline, the value of stocks decreased by $32.1 billion.