Wall Street fell again, part of a worldwide swoon for stocks as worries about the economy pile higher.
The S&P 500 fell 0.7 percent Wednesday after House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said Republicans and Democrats remain far apart in efforts to prevent a default on the U.S. government’s debt. The main U.S. stock index is on track for its worst week in more than two months as the once-unthinkable creeps closer to possibility.
Other markets around the world fell even more on discouraging economic reports. Some of the worst losses came from companies that gave forecasts that fell short of expectations.
On Wednesday, May 24:
The S&P 500 fell 30.34 points, or 0.7 percent, to 4,115.24.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 255.59 points, or 0.8 percent, to 32,799.92.
The Nasdaq composite fell 76.08 points, or 0.6 percent to 12,484.16.
The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 20.71 points, or 1.2 percent, to 1,767.
For the week:
The S&P 500 is down 76.74 points, or 1.8 percent.
The Dow is down 626.71 points, or 1.9 percent.
The Nasdaq is down 173.74 points, or 1.4 percent.
The Russell 2000 is down 6.72 points, or 0.4 percent.
For the year:
The S&P 500 is up 275.74 points, or 7.2 percent.
The Dow is down 347.33 points, or 1 percent.
The Nasdaq is up 2,017.68 points, or 19.3 percent.
The Russell 2000 is up 5.75 points, or 0.3 percent.
