Wall Street had its worst day in more than four months today as the dollar weakened and concerns about the strength of the retail industry arose following a rare sales decline at Wal-Mart. The Dow Jones industrials fell 158 points.

Wall Street extended its November rally into a new week today, betting that an upcoming series of economic reports will show strength in the overall economy with inflation contained.

Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan says the past year’s rise in the price of oil, gasoline and industrial commodities should prove “transitory”, enabling the Fed to raise interest rates gradually and curb inflation without smothering expansion.