Stocks decline in early trading

Stock prices are lower. The Dow Jones Industrial
Average is down 215 points in today's early going.
The Nasdaq Composite Index is off 42 points and the
Standard-and-Poor's 500 Stock Index is down 25 points.

The market is coming off last week's strong performance, amid
indications that the start of the holiday shopping season went
better than expected for retailers.
Economic data is looming in the coming hour. The Institute for
Supply Management releases its report on the manufacturing sector.
Also due is the reading on October construction spending from the
Commerce Department. Both Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson are scheduled to speak later in
the day.
Johnson & Johnson has announced plans to buy medical products
supplier Mentor Corp. for $31 a share or more than $1 billion. The
offer represents a 92 percent premium over Mentor's closing stock
price of $16.15 on Friday.