Accounting worries drag stocks lower

Persistent worries about corporate accounting scandals sent stock prices sharply lower again today as a new probe into the books of WorldCom worsened an already dismal climate of distrust in corporate America.

The declines extended Wall Street’s more than six-week-long losing streak and marked another five-year low for the technology-focused Nasdaq composite index, which fell through its post-September 11 low close on Monday.