Dow flirts with largest one-day drop in 2 weeks at its nadir as VIX kicks above 20
The Dow Jones Industrial Average late Tuesday was trading near session lows and set for its sharpest one-day drop since Feb. 8, when the benchhmark unraveled by more than 1,000 points. At its low, the Dow was off about 335 points, or 1.3%, at 24,884.19, but was most recently off 260 points at 24,962. The blue-chip gauge has been under pressure throughout the session on the back of weakness in shares of Walmart Inc. after the retailing giant reported fourth-quarter results that showed some softness in its online business. Selling pressure accelerated for the Dow with about an hour left in regular trade. Walmart shares were on track to mark the worst point decline on record, which was subtracting about 70 points from the Dow. A $1 move in any one of the Dow's 30 components translates to a 6.89-swing in the price-weighted average. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 index was down 0.6% at 2,715, while the Nasdaq Composite Index , which had held on to modest gains throughout the session, was off 0.1% at 7,229. Meanwhile, a measure of volatility was trading above its historical average at 20. The CBOE Volatility Index was up at 20.89, which typically suggests that stock investors are expecting increased volatility in the coming month.
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