Wall Street falls sharply as investors, worrying about recess, ponder Obama impact on economy
A case of postelection nerves sent Wall Street plunging Wednesday as investors, looking past Barack Obama’s presidential victory, returned to their fears of a deep and protracted recession. Volatility swept over the market again, with the Dow Jones industrials falling nearly 500 points and all the major indexes tumbling more than 5 percent.
The market was widely expected to give back some gains after a runup that lifted the Standard & Poor’s 500 index more than 18 percent and that gave the Dow its best weekly advance in 34 years; moreover, many analysts had warned that Wall Street faced more turbulence after two months of devastating losses.
But investors lost their recent confidence about the economy and began dumping stocks again.
U.S. Stocks Post Biggest Post-Election Drop on Economic Concern
The stock market posted its biggest plunge following a presidential election as reports on jobs and service industries stoked concern the economy will worsen even as President-elect Barack Obama tries to stimulate growth.
Citigroup Inc. tumbled 14 percent and Bank of America Corp. lost 11 percent as the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index and Dow Jones Industrial Average sank more than 5 percent. Nucor Corp., the largest U.S.-based steel producer, slid 10 percent after bigger rival Arcelor Mittal doubled production cuts amid slowing demand. Boeing Co., the world’s second-largest commercial plane maker, lost 6.9 percent after UBS AG forecast a 3 percent drop in global air traffic next year.
- Stocks extend decline as economic woes mount
- Retailers report steep sales declines in October
- Longer-term jobless benefits hit 25-year high
- Fidelity to cut nearly 1,300 jobs
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