Markets slide, here and there

Stocks slumped in Asia, Europe and on Wall Street Thursday with a report indicating Europe's recession will not turn around soon. Research firm Markit said the Purchasing Managers Index for the 17-nation eurozone slipped further into the red in September with the index for the region dropping from 46.3 in August to 45.9. Numbers below 50 in the index indicate business contraction. The index for the United States managed to remain unchanged at 51.5, Markit said. The Labor Department, meanwhile, said first time jobless claims fell by 3,000 to 385,000 in the week ending Saturday. In midmorning trading in New York, the Dow Jones industrial average lost 49.13 points, or 0.36 percent, to 13,528.63. The tech-dominated Nasdaq Composite index shed 21.25 points, or 0.67 percent, to 3,161.37. The Standard and Poor's 500 gave up 9.21 points, or 0.63 percent, to 1,451.84. The benchmark 10-year treasury rose 13/32 to yield 1.735 percent. The euro fell to $1.2934 from Wednesday's $1.3049. The U.S. dollar fell to 78.22 yen from 78.38 yen. In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 index lost 1.57 percent, 145.23 points, to 9,086.98.