World Markets: New York

US STOCKS fell as investors found no reason to buy after eight days of gains in the Dow Jones. The Dow average fell 46.34 to 9,274.64, after gaining 530 points since 16 December.

Merck & Co, which is up 40 per cent for the year, Lucent Technologies, up 172 per cent, and Microsoft, up 115 per cent, led the decline.

"Investors have recognised that some large stocks may be overvalued,'' said one analyst. The Nasdaq fell 14.82 to 2,166.95, retreating from an all-time high of 2,196.64.