NEW YORK, April 4 (UPI) -- U.S. market indexes fell Friday morning after a government employment report pointed to another sign that the economy is contracting.

The Labor Department said the country lost 80,000 jobs in March. Earlier this week, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said the gross domestic product may stall or shrink for half of 2008.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell in midmorning trading Friday to 12,567.08, down 58.95 points or 0.47 percent.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index dropped 2.21 to 1,367.18, off 0.16 percent.

The Nasdaq composite index lost 1.67 to 2,361.63, off 0.07 percent.

The 10-year treasury note gained 25/32 to yield 3.498 percent.

The dollar lost ground. The euro traded at $1.5736 from Thursday's $1.5663, while the dollar traded at 101.72 yen from Thursday's 102.38 yen.

In Tokyo, the Nikkie index fell 96.68, down 0.72 percent to 13,293.22.

Searching for discounts? Try online stores

NEW YORK, April 4 (UPI) -- Shopping online can put the buyer in the driver's seat when it comes to searching for discounts and promotional sales, several Web site designers said.

Several retail web sites have been designed to specifically point shoppers in the direction of a good deal, USA Today reported Friday.

Before clicking "buy now" shoppers at retail outlets that specialize in finding deals first check out the coupon code Web site, to ensure a deal is possible.

BradsDeals.com has a staff of eight searching for discounts and found 2,400 coupon codes in a recent week to pass on to shoppers. RetailMeNot.com had 71,000 coupons posted from 13,000 different merchants recently, the report said.

At RetailMeNot, shoppers submit 200 to 300 coupon codes each day, the site's owner Guy King said.

In turn, RetailMeNot found its users averaged a savings of $29 based on the average purchase price of $151, the report said.

Shoppers might also try Currentcodes.com and CouponCabin.com when searching for current deals.

Be advised, USA Today reported, shoppers should still compare prices and include shipping costs in their math, when shopping online.

Shoppers can also try bundling several coupon codes together for better deals.

"Always worth trying," King said.

Small car sales boomed in first quarter

DETROIT, April 4 (UPI) -- U.S. car buyers are thinking small in 2008, trading in mid-sized for compact and compact for small, industry data shows.

Vehicle sales in the United States dropped 12 percent overall in March but sales of the smallest cars on the market boomed, up 27 percent, USA Today reported Friday.

Sales of the Toyota Yaris jumped 70 percent, while Honda Fit sales increased 61 percent and the Kia Spectra rose 41 percent, the report said.

Rising petroleum prices have driven consumers to trade down in size and up in mileage. But, consumers are also feeling an economic pinch and trading down in features, the report said.

Data from several small car sales, including the Nissan Versa, shows consumers are paying less for the same small cars than they did a year ago, the report said.

Prosecutors question Samsung chairman

SEOUL, April 4 (UPI) -- Samsung Group Chairman Lee Kun-hee said upon leaving a special prosecutor's office in Seoul Friday that he did not engage in bribery.

"I didn't," Lee responded when a reporter asked if he bribed officials, Yonhap reported.

Lee then blamed the media "who have passed on such things."

Prosecutors have already questioned Lee's wife Hong Ra-hee and several other family members, Yonhap reported.

The investigation began after Kim Yong-chul, a former Samsung attorney, alleged in January the company had set up a $202 million fund for bribing officials.

The scandal has South Koreans on edge. The company accounts for nearly a quarter of the nation's exports and gross national product, the report said.