U.S. markets stumble at the start

NEW YORK, March 6 (UPI) -- Stocks in New York followed equity markets in Asia and Europe lower Tuesday as economic growth shrank in the eurozone in the fourth quarter.

Eurostat, the statistical department of the European Commission, said the gross domestic product for the 17-member region that shares the euro as currency fell 0.3 percent October through December.

For the year, the economy grew 0.7 percent for the region. While better than expected, the figures, overall, indicate that a double-dip recession in Europe is likely.

In midmorning trading on Wall Street, the Dow Jones industrial average gave up 158.40 points, 1.22 percent to 12,804.41. The Standard & Poor's 500 index lost 17.56 points, 1.29 percent, to 1,346.77. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index shed 37.28 points, 1.26 percent, to 2,913.20.

The benchmark 10-year treasury note gained 22/32 to yield 1.943 percent.

The euro fell to $1.3127 from Monday's $1.3217. Against the yen, the dollar fell to 80.69 yen from 81.56 yen.

In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 index lost 0.63 percent, 60.96 points, to 9,637.63.