Stocks fall; Dow's 7-day winning streak at risk

NEW YORK (AP):

Stocks slipped yesterday, threatening to break a seven-day streak of gains for the Dow Jones industrial average.

Major indexes fell after the head of the United States central bank said that he expects unemployment to remain high for several years. Ben Bernanke, the chairman of the Federal Reserve, told members of the House of Representatives that the economy is strengthening but that companies haven't yet stepped up hiring. Last week, the Labor Department said the unemployment rate dropped to 9 per cent in January.

Bond prices rose following Bernanke's testimony, reversing a slump that had pushed yields up to their highest levels since April. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite to its price, fell to 3.67, from 3.74 late Tuesday.

The Dow Jones industrial average lost 25 points, or 0.2 per cent, to 12,207, in afternoon trading. The Standard & Poor's 500 lost 6 points, or 0.5 per cent, to 1,318. The Nasdaq composite lost 10, or 0.4 per cent, to 2,786.

- AP