US stocks tumble despite Obama's victory

Stocks are down in early trading as Wall Street focuses on the troubled economy following Barack Obama's election to the White House.

Analysts said the market expected an Obama victory and Wednesday's selling was part of a trading pattern known as "buy on the rumour, sell on the news."

Investors were also cashing in on some of their gains from Tuesday's big rally, which sent the Dow Jones industrials up more than 300 points on expectations that battered stocks would enjoy a traditional yearend rally.

Analysts say investors are focused on the economy rather than the election. They're awaiting a report that's expected to show that the service sector, like the manufacturing sector, shrank in October.

The Dow is down about 152 points, or 1.59 per cent, to the 9,472 level. Broader market indexes are also down more than 1.5 per cent.