NEW YORK: Wall Street stocks tumbled on Tuesday, snapping a two-day winning streak to close the first quarter on a sour note as volatility in equity markets stays high.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average sank 200.19 points (1.11 per cent) to 17,776.12. The broad-based S&P 500 fell 18.35 points (0.88 per cent) to 2,067.89, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 46.56 points (0.94 per cent) to 4,900.88.
US stocks have been choppy as investors ponder US monetary policy, Greece’s prospects for staying in the eurozone and the big drop in OIL PRICES. “We’re seeing an increase in volatility. Investors have a lot of questions,” said Alan Skrainka, chief investment officer at Cornerstone Wealth Management.
Data on Tuesday showed a gain in consumer confidence in March and a modest year-on-year rise in US home prices in January.
Biotech stocks, which have been seen by some analysts as overvalued, fell sharply. Biogen lost 2.2 per cent, Celgene fell 4.0 per cent and Gilead Sciences declined 2.5 per cent.
