U.S. Stocks Retreat on Worse-Than-Estimated Jobs, Services Data

By Matt Townsend

Aug. 5 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks fell, dragging the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index down from a nine-month high, after reports on job losses and service industries were worse than economists estimated.

Procter & Gamble Co., the world’s largest household- products maker, dropped 3.1 percent after profit fell on lower sales of higher-priced skin care and detergents. Nine of the 10 main industry groups in the S&P 500 declined, while financial shares rallied after mortgage insurer Radian Group Inc. posted better-than-estimated results.

The S&P 500 slipped 0.6 percent to 999.69 as of 1:54 p.m. in New York. The gauge climbed yesterday to 0.1 point below its close on Nov. 4, the day President Barack Obama was elected. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 61.14 points, or 0.7 percent, to 9,259.05.

“Data is less bad, but it’s still going to be weak,â€