Stocks ended near their session lows, weighed by a sell-off in tech stocks, and as investors remain cautious ahead of a key decision out of Europe and the Federal Reserve's latest policy meeting. Also, Spain’s Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy was quoted as saying he hadn’t decided whether the country should request European Central Bank aid. Chinese imports fell 2.6% in August while exports grew less than expected in the latest sign of weakness in China’s economy. Sell-off in Intel weighed on the Dow industrials and the technology sector. Intel slid 3.8% after Morgan Stanley cut the co.’s third-quarter revenue and earnings outlook. On the upside, Hewlett-Packard rose 0.82% after it said it plans now plans to cut 29,000 positions, increasing the total number of job cuts by 2000 over the next two years. Advanced Micro Devices rose 0.58% after Goldman Sachs upgraded the stock to neutral on valuation. Western Digital slipped 1.62% after the co. announced CEO John Coyne will retire on Jan. 2 and will be replaced by President Steve Milligan.
