Stock prices closed lower after flipflopping most of the day, pressured by a weaker dollar and concerns about the economy under a new administration. Some analysts said they were surprised by the selling activity that erupted at the opening bell. They said the weaker dollar was only partly to blame. ``I guess the market is saying it's worried more about the economy than about the election,'' said Carter Randall, money manager for The Randall Co. in Florida. Other observers said the bearish sentiment was to be expected as investors put the election behind them and began to question life under a George Bush administration. ``The market is back to thinking about fundamental questions about the economy,'' said Alfred E. Goldman, vice president of A.G. Edwards & Sons Inc. in St. Louis. ``The big question is how is he going to handle the federal budget deficit particularly since he painted himself into a corner by saying there wouldn't be any tax increases?'' The market reversed its slide before midday but continued its decline in afternoon trading, influenced by the continued slide in the dollar despite several attempts by the Federal Reserve to support the currency. The dollar weakened further at one point in the day after remarks by economist Martin Feldstein, a Bush adviser, that the dollar had to go lower to extend the economic recovery and help the U.S. trade deficit. The fall in the dollar sent bond prices tumbling. ``The bond and dollar have combined to put pressure on the market,'' Goldman said. ``The softer dollar conjures up fears that the Fed will have to come in and support the dollar by raising interest rates.'' A weaker currency also erodes the value of dollar-denominated securities.
