Bad jobs report halts Wall Street's rally

A bad jobs report today halted Wall Street’s 2004 rally, sending stocks sharply lower as investors cashed in profits from the market’s recent advance. Regulatory problems for IBM and downgrades of telecommunications stocks also pulled prices lower.

Barry Berman, head trader for Robert W Baird & Co in Milwaukee, noted that the market held up relatively well through the day despite the early morning Labor Department report of anaemic job growth in December.