Dow Jones drops 1,190 points amid coronavirus fears

Traders work on the the floor of the New York Stock Exchange at the opening bell in New York City on Thursday. Photo by John Angelillo/UPI

Feb. 27 (UPI) — The three major U.S. markets entered correction territory on Thursday as concerns about COVID-19 grew.

The markets dropped 10 percent below their record closes with the Dow Jones Industrial Average falling 1,190 points, or 4.42 percent. The S&P 500 also fell 4.42 percent and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 4.61 percent as new cases of the coronavirus disease emerged worldwide including the first community transmission in the United States.

Apple, Intel and Exxon Mobil each dropped at least 6 percent, while AMD fell 7.3 percent and Nvidia slid 5.6 percent, dragging the Dow to one of its largest single-day points drop in history.

The Nasdaq also posted its largest one-day loss since August 2011.

Companies including Microsoft and Paypal warned that COVID-19 will negatively impact their earnings and revenue.

Microsoft stock fell 7.1 percent after saying its supply chain was “returning to normal operations at a slower pace than anticipated.”

The U.S. Department of Commerce also said Thursday that the domestic economy grew 2.1 percent in the fourth quarter of 2019 and 2.3 percent for the year, the second straight year in which economic growth failed to reach the Trump administration’s 3 percent target.

The benchmark 10-year Treasury yield also fell below 1.25 percent Thursday.

Internationally, Japan’s Nikkei dropped 2 percent, while the Pan-European Stoxx 600 fell 4 percent and Britain’s FTSE slid 3.5 percent.

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