Stocks tumble: Dow drops 195 points; Nasdaq plunges 1.6%
Stocks are ending the month on a weak note as traders react to new information, ranging from a suddenly weakening dollar vs. the euro and strong incoming U.S. data that raised fresh fears about interest rate hikes.
The Dow Jones industrial average tumbled 195.01 points, or 1.1%, to 17,840.52 and the Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 21.34 points, or 1%, to 2085.51.
Tech stocks got hammered as the Nasdaq composite index tumbled 82.22 points, or 1.6%, to 4941.42.
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Wall Street is closing their books on April, and girding for the start of May on Friday, which historically has been the start of the worst six-month stretch for stocks.
Popular Wall Street plays, such as betting on a higher U.S. dollar and continued low interest rates, are being called into question.
Solid economic data released today, including a better-than-expected reading on manufacturing in the Chicago region and a bigger-than-expected rise in employment costs is signaling that the first-quarter soft patch may, in fact, be transitory, as the Federal Reserve suggested in its policy statement Wednesday.
Any signs of an economic reacceleration will also put back on the table a Fed rate hike as early as June.
Stocks fell for a second straight day after Wednesday's news of anemic GDP growth of 0.2% in the first quarter and the Fed's announcement that showed policymakers are still grappling with when to begin raising interest rates but indicated they can hike rates at any meeting.
Yields on 10-year government bonds are staying north of 2%. Crude oil on the U.S. market continues to push toward the $60-a-barrel mark.
In economic news released Thursday:
■ Weekly applications for unemployment benefits plunged 34,000 to 262,000 -- the lowest level since April 2000, the Labor Department says.
■ Employee compensation rose 2.6% in the first quarter compared to a year ago, the fastest pace since 2008's fourth quarter, Labor says.
■ Consumer spending gained 0.4% in March, the strongest gain since November, Commerce Department data shows.
In first-quarter earnings news:
■ ExxonMobil earnings dove 46% on lower oil prices and revenue and the company announced a 9.5% dividend increase. Dow component XOM fell 0.6%.
■ Time Warner Cable saw its largest increase in video subscribers in six years. But earnings missed Street expectations, and TWC dropped 1.5%.
■ The New York Times Co. posted a net loss of $14.2 million following a decline advertising sales and pension settlement payments to former employees. NYT gained 4.5%.
■ Viacom saw a net loss of $53 million as its theatrical film business dropped and operating expenses climbed. VIA dropped 4.4% lower.
Major European benchmarks ended up a tad. The DAX of Germany gained 0.2% after Wednesday's huge 3% drop.
Shares fell in Asia on Thursday following the U.S. economic news, and Japan also reported that its industrial output fell 0.3% in March from the month before and 1.2% from the previous year.
However the figures were not as bad as expected, easing pressure on the country's central bank to further ease its ultra-loose monetary policy.
Japan's Nikkei 225 index plunged 2.7% and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index dropped 0.9%. The Shanghai Composite fell 0.8%.
Contributing: Gary Strauss, Mike Snider, Roger Yu, Jane Onyanga-Omara.