U.S. stocks extend losses after heavy sell-off

NEW YORK, Feb. 5 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks retreated further in the morning session on Monday as investor sentiment was still dented by Friday's heavy sell-off.

Around midday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 162.76 points, or 0.64 percent, to 25,358.20. The S&P 500 decreased 15.67 points, or 0.57 percent, to 2,746.46. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 23.72 points, or 0.33 percent, to 7,217.22.

On Friday, U.S. stocks plunged, with the Dow slumping over 650 points, as investors worried that the Federal Reserve may hike rates on a faster pace after an upbeat jobs report.

U.S. total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 200,000 in January, beating market consensus, and the unemployment rate stayed unchanged at 4.1 percent, the Labor Department reported Friday.

Analysts said the market is now thinking about the possibility of the Fed raising interest rates four times this year, after the release of the stronger-than-expected jobs report.

On the economic front, the ISM Non-Manufacturing Index registered 59.9 percent in January, 3.9 percentage points higher than the seasonally adjusted December reading and beating market consensus of 56.2, the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) said Monday.

Meanwhile, the seasonally adjusted final IHS Markit U.S. Services Business Activity Index registered 53.3 in January, in line with market expectations. Enditem