(Reuters) - U.S. stocks fell on Wednesday as weaker-than-expected data spurred concerns over economic growth ahead of Friday's jobs report and first-quarter earnings.
The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> fell 78.2 points, or 0.44 percent, to 17,697.92, the S&P 500 <.SPX> lost 8.2 points, or 0.4 percent, to 2,059.69 and the Nasdaq Composite <.IXIC> dropped 20.66 points, or 0.42 percent, to 4,880.23.
(Reporting By Sinead Carew; Editing by Nick Zieminski)