The dismal start to 2016 on Wall Street got a lot worse Wednesday.<\/p>\n
Stocks tumbled again on fears of a global slowdown and alarm over plummeting oil prices, officially sending the Standard & Poor\u2019s 500 index into what\u2019s known as a correction, or a drop of 10 percent or more from its peak.<\/p>\n
The Dow Jones industrial average also slumped, losing more than 300 points.<\/p>\n
The eight-day drop is the worst start to a year in the history of both the S&P 500 and the Dow.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt the very core of this, there\u2019s a bull-bear debate,\u201d said Quincy Krosby, market strategist at Prudential Financial. The question, she said, is whether the economy is strong enough to justify how high stock prices are.<\/p>\n
The rocky start to the year reflects mounting worries on Wall Street about the slowdown in China, the world\u2019s second-biggest economy; a plunge in oil prices to the lowest level in 12 years; and the implications for U.S. corporations, especially energy companies.<\/p>\n
The S&P 500, which is the most closely watched gauge of the broader market and reached a record high in May, is now down 7.5 percent this year, while the Dow is off 7.3 percent.<\/p>\n
The Nasdaq is deeper in the red, down 9.6 percent. The Russell 2000, which is made up of small-company stocks, is down 20 percent from its June peak. That big a plunge is defined as a bear market.<\/p>\n
Energy and consumer stocks bore the brunt of the selling. The price of U.S. crude oil closed slightly higher, but remains near $30 a barrel, a level that investors fear could force many oil and gas companies to go bankrupt. Brent crude, the international standard, fell 2 percent.<\/p>\n
Some of the biggest winners from last year, such as Netflix and Amazon, both of which doubled in value in 2015, also fell sharply.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe momentum names that drove this market higher have just been clobbered,\u201d Krosby said.<\/p>\n
All told, the Dow lost 364.81 points, or 2.2 percent, to 16,151.41. The S&P 500 fell 48.40 points, or 2.5 percent, to 1,890.28. It was the worst day for the index since Sept. 28.<\/p>\n
The Nasdaq slid 159.85 points, or 3.4 percent, to 4,526.06.<\/p>\n
Biotechnology stocks took a drubbing. The Nasdaq Biotechnology index lost 5.3 percent and is down 17.2 percent this year.<\/p>\n
The market recorded its best day of the year on Tuesday and appeared to be headed for more gains early on Wednesday. But then a report showed that demand for fuels slipped last month.<\/p>\n
Investors also began to size up discouraging earnings outlooks from companies like Ford, which fell 65 cents, or 5.1 percent, to $12.20.<\/p>\n
Among energy companies, Williams Cos. tumbled $2.93, or 17.7 percent to $13.61. Consol Energy slid 65 cents, or 9.7 percent, to $6.05. Valero Energy shed $6.16, or 8.7 percent, to $65.03.<\/p>\n
In Europe, Germany\u2019s DAX fell 0.2 percent while France\u2019s CAC 40 rose 0.3 percent. The FTSE 100 of leading British shares gained 0.5 percent. In Asia, stocks rallied despite a 2.4 percent drop in the Shanghai Composite. Japan\u2019s Nikkei 225 stock index jumped 2.9 percent while Hong Kong\u2019s Hang Seng gained 1.1 percent. South Korea\u2019s Kospi and Australia\u2019s S&P\/ASX 200 added 1.3 percent. Shares in New Zealand and Southeast Asia were mostly higher.<\/p>\n
The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.07 percent from 2.11 percent late Tuesday. Trading in foreign exchange markets was subdued. The euro was little changed at $1.0857, and the dollar rose to 117.89 yen from 117.58 yen.<\/p>\n
Gold rose $1.90 to $1,087.10 an ounce, silver rose 41 cents to $14.16 an ounce and copper was little changed at $1.96 a pound.<\/p>\n
In other energy trading, wholesale gasoline fell 3.2 cents to $1.053 a gallon, heating oil fell 2.1 cents to 96.9 cents a gallon, and natural gas rose 1.2 cents to $2.269 per 1,000 cubic feet.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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