U.S. stocks dropped on Thursday, with most losses coming from a sudden move during midday trade. All three market averages were able to recover in later trading, but were not able to pull out of their slump by closing bell.
Several causes of the midday sell off include the festering coronavirus virus fear extended by U.S. hospitals preparing for a pandemic, or the Chinese Global times reporting that there was a sharp increase in virus cases in Beijing. Investors also speculate the drop as being no more than a technical error.
Here's how the market settled Thursday:
S&P 500 Index
Dow Jones Industrial Average
Nasdaq Composite Index
In Major Stock News, shares of E-Trade
In Stock Sector News, most sectors declined on coronavirus fears on Thursday. The few that saw performance increases include Real Estate +1.15, Utilities +0.32%, Materials +0.13% and Consumer Staples +0.10%. The rest that had performance declines include Information Technology -1.01%, Health Care -0.62%, Communication Services -0.61%, Industrials -0.17%, Energy -0.17%, Financials -0.13% and Consumer Discretionary ended close to unchanged at -0.01%.
Lastly, in Commodity and Currency News, crude oil prices ended the day mixed again, although U.S. barrel prices and futures increased. West Texas Intermediate