U.S. stocks were mixed Wednesday afternoon as a survey on hiring did little to ease uncertainty over the health of the economy, AP reported. The market was recovering from earlier declines that pulled down consumer products, transportation and technology companies, and effectively wiped out modest gains from a day earlier. KEEPING SCORE: The Dow Jones industrial average teetered between slight gains and losses all afternoon but was up 26 points, or 0.2 percent, to 15,472 at 2 p.m. (1900 GMT). The Standard & Poor's 500 index was essentially unchanged at 1,755. The Nasdaq composite fell six points, or 0.2 percent, to 4,024. JOB GROWTH: A private survey on Wednesday showed that U.S. businesses added jobs at a steady but modest pace in January, a sign that hiring has rebounded after a disappointing figure in December. Payroll processor ADP said companies added 175,000 jobs last month. That's down from 227,000 in December, which was revised lower. But it was much better than the government's official figure of just 74,000 new jobs in December. The ADP numbers cover only private businesses and often diverge from the government's more comprehensive report due out Friday. BIG DECLINERS: Freight transportation company C.H. Robinson Worldwide led the S&P 500's decliners, falling $4.51, or 8 percent to $54.13. Information technology company Cognizant Technology Solutions slid $4.04, or 4 percent, to $92.97. Cosmetics maker Estee Lauder was down $3.76, or 4 percent, to $65.43. MONEY HANDLERS: Several financial services companies were posting gains. Genworth Financial was up 45 cents, or 3.1 percent, to $14.99 after reporting first-quarter earnings. The Hartford Financial Services Group gained 71 cents, or 2 percent, to $33.53. -- SPA 22:35 LOCAL TIME 19:35 GMT تغريد
