U.S. stocks fell on Friday, with shares of technology, energy and industrial companies taking a hit from concerns about global growth after a batch of weak Chinese data and a slide in oil prices.

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As investors shunned growth stocks, the S&P technology index fell 1.76 percent, led by Apple Inc`s 2.4 percent slide and semiconductor stocks tumbling 2.21 percent.

The S&P energy index dropped 0.91 percent as U.S. crude prices entered "bear market" territory, falling more than 20 percent since early October due to concerns over rising global supply. [O/R]

"A lot of investors look at oil prices as the general indicator of the global economy, so it being weak is not a good sign," said Scott Brown, chief economist at Raymond James in St. Petersburg, Florida.

Amid a bitter trade dispute between the Washington and Beijing, Chinese data showed producer inflation fell for the fourth straight month in October on cooling domestic demand and manufacturing activity, while car sales fell for a fourth consecutive month.

The report sent global stocks into a tailspin, with trade-sensitive stocks such as Boeing Co and Caterpillar Inc sliding 0.8 percent and 3.6 percent, respectively.

The Federal Reserve policymakers, as expected, left interest rates unchanged following a two-day meeting on Thursday, and their policy statement signaled more rate hikes ahead, with the fourth hike this year expected in December.

The latest data on U.S. producer prices did little to ease worries about rising interest rates, which have hampered gains in stocks this year.

Prices paid by producers rose 0.6 percent in October – their fastest pace in six years and easily beating expectations of 0.2 percent – fueled by a jump in costs for energy and trade services.

"It`s a classic risk-off driven by the fears of Fed, China and oil," said Cliff Hodge, director of investments at Cornerstone Wealth in Charlotte, North Carolina.

At 11:21 a.m. EDT the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 188.63 points, or 0.72 percent, at 26,002.59, the S&P 500 was down 25.47 points, or 0.91 percent, at 2,781.36 and the Nasdaq Composite was down 120.20 points, or 1.60 percent, at 7,410.68.

Eight of the 11 major S&P sectors were lower, with slight gains seen in the defensive real estate, consumer staples and utilities indexes.

Activision Blizzard Inc dived 12 percent after the video game publisher gave a dismal fourth-quarter forecast.

Dow-member Walt Disney Co rose 2.8 percent after the media company reported better-than-expected results as its theme parks and Marvel movie "Ant-Man and the Wasp" attracted crowd.

Declining issues outnumbered advancers for a 2.40-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and a 2.77-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

The S&P index recorded 25 new 52-week highs and six new lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 32 new highs and 67 new lows.

(This article has not been edited by Zeebiz editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)