NEW YORK (AP) ? U.S. stocks are slipping at the opening of trading on renewed worries about Europe.
Italy’s borrowing rates ratcheted higher and the euro slid below $1.30 for the first time since January, two signs that the debt crisis continues to pressure Europe’s governments. Italy had to pay higher borrowing rates in its last bond auction of the year Wednesday.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 36 points, or 0.3 percent to 11,918 minutes after the opening bell. The S&P 500 index fell 4, or 0.3 percent, to 1,222. The Nasdaq fell 13, or 0.5 percent to 2,565.
In Europe, Germany’s DAX dropped 1.3 percent; France’s main stock index fell 1.9 percent.
First Solar Inc. plunged 16 percent after the country’s largest solar company cut its earnings estimate for the year.