NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks fell broadly in noon trading Wednesday after the release of weak U.S. economic reports. Yields on U.S government bond yields rose to their highest level in two months and oil prices continued to climb. Seven of the 10 industry sectors of the Standard and Poor's 500 index were lower, led by telecommunications companies.
KEEPING SCORE: The S&P 500 fell seven points, or 0.4 percent, to 2,082 as of 12:16 p.m. Eastern time. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 82 points, or 0.5 percent, to 17,846. The Nasdaq composite slipped 16 points, or 0.3 percent, to 4,923.
HIRING SLOWS: U.S. payroll processor ADP said hiring slowed in April to its weakest pace in nearly a year and a half, as a strong dollar dragged down overseas sales and energy companies cut back on spending. A separate government report showed U.S. worker productivity declined in the first three months of the year as labor costs jumped, reflecting a slowdown in growth.
ENERGY RISING: Oil drillers and other energy-related companies rose 0.4 percent as benchmark U.S. crude rose 75 cents to $61.30 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Crude climbed above $60 a barrel for the first time this year on Tuesday following reports that a Libyan oil terminal had closed.
DRUG BOOST: Shares of Synageva BioPharma soared 115 percent after Alexion Pharmaceuticals said it would pay a huge premium to buy the maker of rare disease treatments in an $8.4 billion deal. Synageva has no products on the market and lost nearly $60 million in the first quarter. Its stock rose $110.43 to $206.30.
PROFIT SURGE: Video game maker Electronic Arts and LendingClub rose 4 percent each after reporting results that beat analysts' expectations.
YELLEN COMMENTS: Stocks briefly tumbled to deeper losses early in the morning after Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said stock market valuations were "quite high" in response to a question about risks to financial stability at a conference in Washington. Stocks climbed back soon after.
RATTLE BY RATES? Despite the weak jobs number, the yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose again on Wednesday to 2.22 percent, its highest level since early March. "Interest rates were not a problem as recently as 1 ½ weeks ago, but have suddenly become one," said Mark Luschini, chief investment strategist for Janney Montgomery Scott. "People are worried that (the Fed) could be left flat-footed" in fighting inflation, he said.
GREECE: A standoff in talks between Greece and its lenders is keeping investors in Europe on edge. Top officials in the European Union said they are making progress on finding a way to keep the country afloat and in the 19-nation group of countries that use the euro. But a firm deal to give Greece more money is not expected by May 12, when Greece will have to make a payment to the International Monetary Fund.
EUROPEAN STOCKS: Britain's FTSE 100 inched up 0.1 percent, Germany's DAX rose 0.2 percent. France's CAC 40 climbed 0.2 percent.
ASIA'S DAY: South Korea's Kospi fell 1.3 percent and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 sank 2.3 percent. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index dropped 0.4 percent and China's Shanghai Composite Index lost 1.6 percent. Japan was closed for a holiday.
CURRENCIES: The dollar weakened to 119.49 yen from 119.93 yen. The euro strengthened to $1.1331 from $1.1184.
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Youkyung Lee contributed to this report from Seoul, South Korea.
