Stocks Get Slammed; Dow Drops Nearly 400 Points
The Dow and S&P 500 have lost more than 10 percent from their May highs.
— -- U.S. markets got clobbered today, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 dropping a combined 433 points. U.S. equities are hovering above their August lows.
The Dow slumped 391 points, or 2.39 percent, while the S&P lost 42 points, or 2.18 percent. The Nasdaq slid 127 points, or 2.75 percent. The Dow was down as much as 537 points earlier today.
Stocks plunged at the open and the sell-off continued all day. The Dow and S&P 500 are down more than 10 percent from their May highs, pushing them into "correction territory."
All 30 stocks in the Dow lost ground. January is now the Dow's worst month since February 2009.
The Nasdaq has not experienced these deep losses since 2008. The S&P 500 broke below its Aug. 24 low to trade at its lowest level since October 2004.
The rout in oil prices and concerns over China’s slowing economy fueled the sell-off. U.S. crude prices fell below $30 a barrel and are now trading at 12-year lows.
New oil supplies from Iran, which is starting to ramp up production after an easing of international sanctions, also put downward pressure on oil prices.
European stocks are in a bear market and the Shanghai Composite Index has lost 20 percent since Dec. 22. Yields on 10-year Treasury notes fell below 2 percent as investors turned to safe havens and increasingly believe the Federal Reserve will halt plans to further raise its benchmark interest rate.