U.S. stocks sank again on Wednesday and cemented February as the worst month for the market in two years.
Not only was the month’s loss sharp, at 3.9 percent for the Standard & Poor’s 500 index, it was also the first in a long time. S&P 500 index funds snapped a record-setting run where they had made money for 15 straight months, including dividends.
Some of Wednesday’s drop was due to a slide in the price of oil, which sent energy stocks to the market’s sharpest losses.
On Wednesday:
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The Standard & Poor’s 500 index fell 30.45 points, or 1.1 percent, to 2,713.83.
The Dow Jones industrial average lost 380.83, or 1.5 percent, to 25,029.20.
The Nasdaq composite dropped 57.35, or 0.8 percent, to 7,273.01.
The Russell 2000 index of smaller-company stocks fell 24.03, or 1.6 percent, to 1,512.45.
For the week:
The S&P 500 is down 33.47 points, or 1.2 percent.
The Dow is down 280.79 points, or 1.1 percent.
The Nasdaq is down 64.38 points, or 0.9 percent.
The Russell 2000 is down 36.74 points, or 2.4 percent.
For the year:
The S&P 500 is up 40.22 points, or 1.5 percent.
The Dow is up 309.98 points, or 1.3 percent.
The Nasdaq is up 369.62 points, or 5.4 percent.
The Russell 2000 is down 23.06 points, or 1.5 percent.