March 5 (Reuters) - U.S. stock indexes opened sharply lower
on Thursday as deaths from the coronavirus rose in the United
States, forcing California to declare a state of emergency,
while crippled travel demand hit airline stocks.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI fell 418.94 points,
or 1.55%, at the open to 26,671.92.
The S&P 500 .SPX opened lower by 54.42 points, or 1.74%,
at 3,075.70. The Nasdaq Composite .IXIC dropped 228 points, or
2.53%, to 8,790.09 at the opening bell.