100-Point Drop Greets Obama

The market had an election hangover this morning. The Dow fell 152 points at the open, The Wall Street Journal reports, following yesterday’s 305-point rise, the biggest Election Day rally ever. “The conclusion of the election race has brought home the reality of the enormity of the task facing the new administration,” said one trader. Investors will now turn to economic data, which are expected to be weak.

The private sector shed 157,000 jobs last month, according to a report out today, which bodes poorly for Friday’s big non-farm payrolls report. Goods-producing industries faced the biggest declines. Time Warner reported flat earnings, citing the economic slowdown. The S&P and Nasdaq fell 1.8% and 1.6% respectively. The dollar meanwhile rose, oil futures fell $2.96, and credit rates fell incrementally. (More markets stories.)