By Rex Crum, MarketWatch
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Much of the tech sector mirrored
the broader market and was in the red Wednesday afternoon, with
Zynga Inc. and Apple Inc. among the sector's few notable
advancers.
The overall sector slumped early, and continued to lose ground
as the numbers for private-payroll growth disappointed.
The results, from ADP (ADP), showed private-sector jobs growing
by of 158,000 in March, a figure that fell below expectations of
215,000 job gains. In February, ADP reported a revised gain of
237,000 jobs
The Nasdaq Composite Index (RIXF) fell more than 25 points to
3,229, while the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index (SOX) was down by
1.5%
Zynga (ZNGA) shares remained strong, rising more than 15%, to
$3.54. The online gaming company got a lift as it debuted its first
real-money gambling websites in the United Kingdom, ZyngaPlusPoker
and ZyngaPlusCasino.
Facebook Inc. (FB), which many consumer use to play Zynga's
games, rose almost 3%, to $26.17. Facebook is scheduled to host an
event at its headquarters Thursday, which is expected to revolve
around a so-called "Facebook phone".
Gains also came from Apple (AAPL), which rose $2 a share, to
$431.40 following reports that the company will begin production on
the next version of the iPhone this quarter.
Netflix Inc. (NFLX), however, was among the standout decliners,
as its shares fell more than 4% to $165.60. On Tuesday, the
Securities and Exchange Commission cleared Netflix and Chief
Executive Reed Hastings of any wrongdoing when Hastings used his
Facebook page last summer to report the company's online-streaming
viewing hours for the month of June.
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