THE MARKETS

Stocks were down sharply today on the first business day of the new quarter as Wall Street was shaken by news that manufacturing activity again slowed in September. The Dow Jones industrial average ended down 27.82 points at 4,761.26. The New York Stock exchange composite index was also down 1.18 to 312.08. On the Big Board, decliners led advancers 1,338 to 932 on moderate volume of 304 million shares. The Nasdaq index also fell today, losing15.97 points to end the day at 1,027.57. The Standard & Poor's 500 stocks were off 2.69 to 581.72. The American Stock Exchange index was off 4.12 to 540.60. In London, gold closed down $.0.75 to end the day at $383.25