U.S. markets start Friday with hard slide

New York -- U.S. stock markets, close to even on the year a week ago, slipped further into red ink in early trading Friday, as oil prices continued a relentless surge.

Oil prices broke the $125-per-barrel barrier Friday, just four days after first topping $120 a barrel.

On Friday morning, the Dow Jones industrial average dropped 103.32 points to 12,763.46, off 0.8 percent. The Standard & Poor's 500 index lost 10.50 points to 1,387.18, off 0.75 percent. The Nasdaq composite index lost 15.90 points to 2,435.34, off 0.65 percent.

The 10-year U.S. Treasury note gained 5/32 to yield 3.765 percent.

The euro traded at $1.5438 from Thursday's $1.5398, while the dollar traded at 103.23 yen from Thursday's 103.92 yen.

In Tokyo, the Nikkei index dropped 287.92 points and closed the week at 13,655.34, off 2.06 percent.

Copyright 2008 by United Press International.