Dow tumbles 123 points

US stocks fell sharply again today, with the Dow ones industrial average losing more than 123 points after a surprisingly weak reading on the service sector raised concerns about the continuing impact of higher energy prices.

Equities opened lower after yesterday’s selloff, then fell further when the Institute for Supply Management reported that its non-manufacturing business index, which measures the service sector, dropped to 53.3 in September from 65.0 in August.