Retailers Pull Stocks Lower on Poor Holiday Sales

Stocks are closing lower after a weak holiday shopping report sent shares of major retailers lower.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 24 points to close at 13,114 Wednesday. It was the third straight loss for the Dow.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell six to 1,419 and the Nasdaq composite lost 22 to 2,990.

The MasterCard Advisors SpendingPulse report found that sales of electronics, clothing, jewelry and home goods increased just 0.7 percent in the two months before Christmas.

That's well below the growth of 3 to 4 percent analysts expected and the worst performance since 2008.

Macy's, Sears and Urban Outfitters all fell.

Falling stocks outnumbered rising ones two to one on the New York Stock Exchange. Volume was very low at 2.3 billion shares.

(Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press.  All Rights Reserved).