August 19, 2013- Stocks Decline for 4th Straight Session on Stimulus Concerns

Stocks lost ground again in Monday's trading, adding to the steep decline seen last week. Wall Street saw mild gains early in the session, as investors tested the waters after the recent sell off. Enthusiasm for bargain hunting soon tapered off, however, and by mid-day, shares were losing ground again. The major averages eventually finished the day with modest losses. This marked the fourth consecutive day of declines for Wall Street. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 70.73 points, or about 0.5 percent. The blue-chip index is now hovering just above the 15,000 mark, ending the day at 15,010.74. The Nasdaq slipped 13.69 points, or 0.4 percent, to close at 3,589.09. The S&P 500 retreated 9.77 points, or 0.6 percent, to end at 1,646.06. There was little in the way of new information to drive the stock market on Monday. After last week's flurry of data, there were no major reports on the schedule. The week as a whole is light on new statistics, though some information on home sales and on layoffs will draw attention later in the week.