US stocks fell further in early afternoon trading on Monday, with the Nasdaq declining more than 2 percent and the Dow and S&P 500 down more than 1 percent each. A downgrade of the semiconductor sector weighed on the tech sector, along with a weaker-than-expected sales forecast by communications equipment maker Ciena Corp.
The Dow Jones industrial average was down 106.00 points, or 0.87 percent, at 12,063.88. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index was down 14.66 points, or 1.11 percent, at 1,306.49. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 54.09 points, or 1.94 percent, at 2,730.58. In late morning trade, Dow Jones industrial average was down 52.98 points, or 0.44 percent, at 12,116.90. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index was down 8.85 points, or 0.67 percent, at 1,312.30. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 37.91 points, or 1.36 percent, at 2,746.76.
In deal news, Western Digital Corp jumped 15 percent to $34.50 as the world's No 2 computer hard drive maker agreed to buy Hitachi Ltd's hard disk drive operations for about $4.3 billion in cash and stock. Citigroup raised its price forecasts for Brent and US benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude for 2011 and 2012, citing a stronger-than-expected first quarter and a "fear premium" on threats of continued output disruptions.
Government forces struck at rebels in Libya's east and were reported attacking a town near Tripoli as concern grew over civilian suffering and a growing refugee exodus.
Opec is contemplating holding an extraordinary meeting, Qatar's Energy Minister said, but he added there was no supply shortage in the market. European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet said the latest oil spike heightened a warning he made on inflationary pressures in January, but added that so far the global economy was set for relatively robust growth.
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