By Chuck MikolajczakNEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks fell in choppy trade on Monday as gains in the energy and banking sectors were more than offset by a drop in pharmaceuticals after Merck's (NYSE:MRK - News) proposed $41 billion takeover of Schering-Plough (NYSE:SGP - News).
Even though news of the acquisition sparked optimism about deal activity, investors worried that it highlighted the broad reach of the recession, weakening even defensive sectors such as pharmaceuticals.
"Any kind of merger or anything like that would be good," said Warren Simpson, managing director at Stephens Capital Management in Little Rock, Arkansas. "But we're just so weak, the internals, everything is just so weak."
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