Stocks slip but Dow on track for best Sept. since '39

Stocks took a pause yesterday from their big September rally as worries about the financial sector offset excitement over a fresh round of corporate deal-making.

The Dow Jones industrial average lost 48 points in a late-day slide, but it's still up 8 percent for the month, putting it on track for its best September since 1939.

Before Monday the Dow had risen in each of the past four weeks.

"The September rally has been surprisingly resilient," said Chip Bryan, chief executive of Smar-Trend, an electronic trend trading system.

Financial stocks mostly dipped as concern remains about the health of Europe's banking sector. Moody's Investors Service cut its rating on Anglo Irish Bank Corp., one of Europe's more troubled banks in recent months. Global banking giants like Barclays Plc and JPMorgan Chase & Co. each fell more than 1 percent.

The Dow fell 48.22, or 0.44 percent, to close at 10,812.04. The Standard & Poor's 500 index dropped 6.51, or 0.57 percent, to 1,142.16, while the Nasdaq composite index fell 11.45, or 0.48 percent, to 2,369.77.

- AP