US STOCKS-Wall Street eyes steepest slide in nearly six weeks on growth worries

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* Sept. U.S. private payrolls grow slower than expected
* Ford falls as quarterly auto sales drop
* Activision Blizzard down on Bernstein rating cut
* Lennar up on better-than-expected profit
* Indexes down: Dow 1.74%, S&P 1.65%, Nasdaq 1.58%

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By Medha Singh and Arjun Panchadar
Oct 2 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks fell to more than a one-month
low and were set to post their sharpest drop in nearly six weeks
on Wednesday, as monthly private sector hiring slowed,
amplifying fears that the trade war with China was hurting the
United States.
The technology stocks .SPLRCT which have powered the
market's climb for most of the year, shed 2.10%. The industrial
.SPLRCI and materials .SPLRCM sectors also fell more than 2%
each, posting the biggest declines among the 11 major S&P
sectors.
The Dow Jones Transport Average .DJT , often looked at as a
gauge of the economy's health, tumbled 2.24%.
Trade tensions likely spilled over to the domestic labor
market as U.S. private employers hired fewer-than-expected
workers in September, according to the ADP National Employment
Report. "People have been anticipating a bear market for years and
they are very anxious and so any number like the ADP number is
amplified in the volatility on the downside," said Tom Plumb,
chief investment officer at Plumb Funds in Madison, Wisconsin.
The private payrolls report, a precursor to the Labor
Department's more comprehensive jobs report due on Friday, comes
a day after data showed U.S. factory activity contracted to its
lowest level in more than a decade.
That hit investor faith in the strength of the domestic
economy, a key reason for a rally in the benchmark index this
year, wiping off the third-quarter gains on the S&P 500 .SPX
and Dow .DJI .
Both indexes slipped below their 100-day moving averages for
the first time in about a month on Wednesday, seen as a strong
technical support level that could presage further losses.
The benchmark index is now about 4.5% below its all-time
high hit in July, after coming within striking distance of it
two weeks ago.
World equity benchmarks also hit their lowest levels in a
month on renewed fears that the trade war could push the global
economy into a recession. MKTS/GLOB
At 11:17 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI
was down 463.10 points, or 1.74%, at 26,109.94, the S&P 500
.SPX was down 48.60 points, or 1.65%, at 2,891.65. The Nasdaq
Composite .IXIC was down 125.04 points, or 1.58%, at 7,783.65.
The Cboe Volatility Index, or VIX .VIX , an options-based
gauge of investor anxiety, rose 2.06 points to 20.62, its
highest in about a month.
Activision Blizzard Inc ATVI.O dropped 3.1% after
Bernstein downgraded the videogame maker's shares to "market
perform".
Ford Motor Co F.N shares fell 3.9% after the carmaker
reported an about 5% fall in U.S. auto sales for the third
quarter. Shares of General Motors Co GM.N dipped 3.5% ahead of
its quarterly auto sales report.
In a bright spot, homebuilder Lennar Corp LEN.N gained
2.0% after the company reported a better-than-expected profit as
cheaper mortgage rates led to higher demand for its homes.
Johnson & Johnson JNJ.N jumped 1.7% after the drugmaker
said it will pay $20.4 million to settle claims by two Ohio
counties, allowing it to avoid an upcoming federal trial seeking
to hold the industry responsible for the nation's opioid
epidemic. Declining issues outnumbered advancers for a 4.27-to-1 ratio
on the NYSE and a 2.79-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
The S&P index recorded three new 52-week highs and 11 new
lows, while the Nasdaq recorded four new highs and 151 new lows.