Strength in Services Sector Weighs on Markets A forecast-busting survey of the United States services sector weighed on stocks Tuesday but gave the dollar a further lift as investors concluded it would make it more likely that the Federal Reserve would start reducing its monetary stimulus sooner than anticipated. In afternoon trading, the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index was 0.1 percent lower, the Dow Jones industrial average was flat and the Nasdaq composite was 0.1 percent higher. The October nonmanufacturing index from the Institute for Supply Management rose to 55.4 points in October from 54.4 in September and was ahead of market expectations for a modest decline to 54 points. The increase came despite the partial shutdown of the United States government and a last minute deal to raise the country's debt ceiling. "It appears, as is becoming increasingly apparent, that the overall impact of the disruption to business will be short-lived," said Andrew Wilkinson, chief economic strategist at Miller Tabak & Company. The survey comes ahead of Friday's publication of the delayed nonfarm payrolls report for October. The payrolls figures are usually the most important economic release of the month. If they are strong, many in the markets may think the Fed could reduce its monetary stimulus as soon as December. The economic news is being viewed through the prism of the Fed's stimulus. The Fed's $85 billion in monthly asset purchases have supported economic recovery by keeping interest rates low and have been one of the reasons many stock indexes, including the main Wall Street markets, have struck record highs this year. The prospect of an early withdrawal following the ISM survey fueled a sell-off in stock markets in Europe and the U.S. In Europe, investors will be bracing for the monthly policy meeting of the European Central Bank. Until last week's news that the annual inflation rate fell to just 0.7 percent in October in the 17 European Union countries that use the euro, no change in policy was expected. Now, many economists think the central bank will either reduce its main interest rate to a record low of 0.25 percent or hint at future easing, given that the central bank's main policy target is to keep inflation just below 2 percent. China's leaders are scheduled to meet in Beijing from Saturday through Nov. 12 to create a new blueprint for the country's economy as its state-led growth model runs out of oomph. Hopes are high that the plenum will announce changes to give private businesses a greater say in the economy, which is the world's second-largest after the United States, but changes will face resistance from officials and state companies who benefit from the status quo. In Europe, the FTSE 100 index of leading British shares ended the day down 0.3 percent, while the CAC 40 in France fell 0.1 percent and Germany's DAX closed 0.3 percent lower. The dollar was making further gains, in particular against the euro, which was down 0.3 percent at $1.3471. The dollar also more or less erased earlier losses against the yen to be trading 0.1 percent lower at 98.54 yen. In Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 closed 0.2 percent higher, at 14,225.37 points, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng shed 0.7 percent, to 23,038.95. China's Shanghai Composite gained 0.4 percent, to 2,157.24. Australia's S.&P./ASX 200 added 0.8 percent, to 5,431.96.