Dow Now in Correction Territory
February 27,2020 10:36 AM EST
Stocks fell sharply once again on Thursday as investors worried the coronavirus may be spreading in the U.S. A slew of corporate and analyst warnings also dragged down the major averages.
The Dow Jones Industrials were bruised 658.38 points, or 2.4%, to kick off Thursday''s session at 26,299.21.
The broader S&P 500 plummeted 88.21 points, or 2.8%, to 3,028.18.
The tech-heavy NASDAQ tumbled 300.1 points, or 3.3%, to 8,680.67.
Those losses put the Dow in correction territory, down 10% from its record close to where the industrials are trading at now. The S&P 500 was in correction territory on an intraday basis. It took the Dow just 10 sessions to tumble from the all-time high. The S&P 500 and NASDAQ set record highs last week.
Apple, Disney and Visa were among the worst-performing Dow stocks, dropping at least 3% each. AMD gave back 4%, and Nvidia fell 4% and 4.2%. Meanwhile, Gilead Sciences climbed 1.9% after the company announced the start of two studies for a possible coronavirus treatment.
Microsoft warned Wednesday it will not meet its revenue guidance for a key segment. In a statement, its supply chain is “returning to normal operations at a slower pace than anticipated,” which led the tech giant to cut its forecast for its personal computing division.
Personal computing accounted for 36% of Microsoft''s overall revenue during the previous quarter. Microsoft shares were down 4%.
PayPal also issued a warning about its outlook. The stock traded 1.3% lower.
The Centers for Disease Control confirmed on Wednesday the first U.S. coronavirus case of unknown origin in Northern California, indicating possible “community spread” of the disease. The CDC doesn''t know exactly how the patient, a California resident, contracted the virus.
President Donald Trump tried to assuage concerns over the outbreak. Trump said in a news conference Wednesday night the risk of coronavirus to people in the U.S. is still “very low.”
He added the U.S. is going to "spend whatever''s appropriate" to deal with the virus. Trump also put Vice President Mike Pence in charge of the U.S. response to the coronavirus. The president added stocks should recover from their recent swoon.
Prices for the 10-Year U.S. Treasury jumped, lowering yields to 1.26% from Wednesday''s 1.34%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices faded $2.36 to $46.37 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices regained $12.10 to $1,655.20 U.S. an ounce.
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