Economic worries spook investors

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Stocks edged lower Tuesday as a string of negative economic reports pressured sentiment.

The Dow Jones industrial average (down 41.63 to 12,044.87, Charts) fell 0.3 percent, with a little less than an hour left in the session. The blue-chip barometer has closed at record highs in 13 of the previous 20 sessions.

The broader S&P 500 (down 2.78 to 1,375.15, Charts) index slipped 0.2 percent, while the tech-fueled Nasdaq (down 2.03 to 2,361.74, Charts) lost a few points. Both indexes hit multi-year highs last week.

The market has come a long way in the last three months and now the mood is starting to shift, said Alfred Goldman, chief market strategist at A.G. Edwards.

"Investors are focusing on signs that the economy is slowing, which is bad for future corporate earnings," he said.

One of the reports dragging on sentiment was the Consumer Confidence index, which slipped in October. The drop surprised Wall Street economists, who were expecting a higher number following the big rally in the stock market and a period of lower oil prices.

Adding to the negative mood was the Chicago PMI report. The regional reading on manufacturing fell more than economists had expected.

Investors also took in a report that showed employment costs rose more than expected in the third quarter.

Oil prices edged higher, rebounding from the previous session's nearly 4 percent decline. Gold prices fell.

The 30-share Dow index struggled, with 19 components declining.

Pfizer (Charts) lost nearly 3 percent after the drugmaker released results from a study for an experimental cholesterol drug. The findings raised worries the drug could face approval delays.

Procter & Gamble posted higher quarterly earnings and boosted its full-year earnings outlook, but investors took a 'sell-the-news' approach. P&G (down $0.72 to $63.09, Charts) shares fell 1 percent.

Verizon (down $0.84 to $36.81, Charts) also continued to slide, one day after the phone company reported earnings that left investors concerned about the strength of its broadband business.

Elsewhere, shares of Eastman Kodak (up $1.02 to $24.77, Charts) climbed 4 percent after it reported a narrower loss from the year-earlier period, beating estimates.

MetLife (down $2.08 to $56.87, Charts) reported upbeat earnings and sales late Monday. However, investors bailed out of the insurer Tuesday, and shares fell 3 percent.

Market breadth was negative. On the New York Stock Exchange, losers beat winners by a margin of six to five on volume of 1.3 billion shares. On the Nasdaq, decliners beat advancers by a margin of nearly three to two on volume of 1.5 billion shares.

Treasury prices rallied, lowering the yield on the 10-year note to 4.61 percent, down from 4.67 percent late Monday. Bond prices and yields move in opposite directions.

U.S. light crude oil for December delivery added 37 cents to $58.73 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

COMEX gold for December delivery lost 60 cents to $606.80 an ounce.

Beware choppy waters ahead

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