Major U.S. stock indexes veered sharply lower in midday trading Thursday as concerns about global economic weakness intensified, even as Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen reiterated her confidence in the U.S. economy. The latest slide followed steep market declines all around the world. Financial stocks were among the biggest decliners.
KEEPING SCORE: The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 359 points, or 2.3 percent, to 15,556 as of 11:20 a.m. The Standard & Poor's 500 lost 35 points, or 1.9 percent, to 1,816. The Nasdaq composite fell 58 points, or 1.4 percent, to 4,225.
GLOBAL JITTERS: Investors are increasingly worried that the mounting market turmoil could put a brake on the global economy at a time it is already struggling with a litany of issues, including China's slowdown, low inflation and plunging energy markets. Fed Chair Janet Yellen, giving her semiannual report to Congress on Wednesday, cautioned that global weakness and falling financial markets could depress the U.S. economy's growth. That could, in turn, slow the pace of Fed interest rate hikes. In her second day of testimony before U.S. lawmakers Thursday, Yellen acknowledged concern about the global economic environment, but said it was too early to tell how big the effect would be on the U.S.
THE QUOTE: Investors are losing confidence in central bank policies, said Anthony Valeri, investment strategist at LPL Financial. "[Central banks] have done all they can do and these policies may not improve economic growth or may not support financial markets," he said.
SECTOR VIEW: All 10 sectors in the S&P 500 index were down. Financials stocks fell the most, down 3 percent. Energy stocks slumped 1.9 percent as oil prices continued to decline.
BANK SLUMP: Several major banks were trading lower. Citigroup fell $2.23, or 6 percent, to $35.17, while JPMorgan slid $2.11, or 3.8 percent, to $53.41. Bank of America shed 85 cents, or 7.1 percent, to $11.14. Wells Fargo lost $1.25, or 2.7 percent, to $44.93.
See Friday's Arkansas Democrat-Gazette for full details.