Tech Leads Stocks Down Early Monday

NEW YORK (AP) -- Renewed losses for technology companies are taking U.S. stock indexes slightly lower Monday morning. Internet companies are also down, while energy companies are falling along with the price of oil. High-yielding defensive stocks including real estate and utility companies are rising. Nissan's stock sank after the company accused its chairman of serious misconduct and announced plans to oust him.

KEEPING SCORE: The S&P 500 index fell 12 points, or 0.5 percent, to 2,724 as of 10 a.m. Eastern time. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 117 points, or 0.5 percent, to 25,295. The Nasdaq composite shed 83 points, or 1.2 percent, to 7,164. The Russell 2000 index of smaller-company stocks lost 10 points, or 0.7 percent, to 1,517.

NISSAN BOSS: Nissan said Chairman Carlos Ghosn was arrested Monday and will be dismissed from the company after allegedly under-reporting his income. Nissan said an internal investigation found Ghosn under-reported his income by millions of dollars and engaged in other "significant misconduct."

U.S.-traded Nissan shares lost 7.4 percent to $16.63. In Paris, shares of Nissan's partner Renault dropped 9.6 percent.

TECH LOSSES MOUNT: Apple gave up 2.6 percent to $188.57 and Amazon shed 2.3 percent to $1,556. Facebook sank 3.3 percent to $134.91 and Microsoft lost 1.1 percent to $107.14. Chipmaker Nvidia dropped another 7.5 percent to $152.10 after it said last week that it had a large number of unsold chips because of a big drop in mining of cryptocurrencies.

Clashes between China and the U.S. at a Pacific Rim summit over the weekend left investors feeling pessimistic about the prospects for a deal that would end the trade tensions between the world's two largest economies. The U.S. has imposed a 10 percent tariff on $200 billion of Chinese goods. That tariff is set to rise to 25 percent in January. Another $50 billion of Chinese goods already is subject to 25 percent duties. Beijing has responded with penalty duties on $110 billion of American goods.

Talks continue ahead of a meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and President Donald Trump planned for the G-20 summit later this month.

ENERGY: Benchmark U.S. crude oil fell 1.6 percent to $55.76 a barrel in New York. U.S. crude prices have dropped for six weeks in a row and are at their lowest level in about nine months.

Brent crude, used to price international oils, lost 1.6 percent to $65.72 a barrel in London.

BONDS: Bond prices fell after a sharp climb last week. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 3.08 percent from 3.07 percent.

CURRENCIES: The dollar slipped to 112.72 yen from 112.83 yen. The euro rose to $1.1430 from $1.1412. The pound dipped to $1.2828 from $1.2831.

OVERSEAS: France's CAC 40 gave up 0.1 percent and Germany's DAX was little changed. Britain's FTSE 100 gained 0.6 percent.

Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 rose 0.7 percent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng added 0.7 percent. South Korea's Kospi gained 0.4 percent.

(BE)