Dow enters bear market as WHO calls coronavirus outbreak a pandemic

All three major US stock averages end the session sharply lower, while oil resumes its slide

A Dow Jones Industrial Average screen after the closing bell on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange in New York, the US, March 11 2020. Picture: REUTERS/ANDREW KELLY

All three major US stock averages ended the session sharply lower, with the benchmark S&P 500 and Nasdaq composite index both about 19% below their February 19 record closing highs. The Dow closed atOil resumed its slide. Brent crude for May settlement fell 3.8%, or $1.43c, to settle at $35.79 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange. West Texas Intermediate crude for April delivery lost $1.38 to settle at $32.98 in New York.

US President Donald Trump did not keep his promise to detail stimulus plans, and late on Wednesday said he the US may not need to take those measures “if we get rid of the problem very quickly”. “Every day we get whipsawed back and forth, and what we’re seeing today is general disappointment that US fiscal policy is not at all clear in how it’s going to stimulate the economy,” said Michael Reynolds, an investment strategy officer at Glenmede Trust.

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