Stock market today: S&P 500 hits fresh record close on stronger economic growth
March 16 (Reuters) - The S&P 500 index plunged over 9% on
Monday as trading resumed after an initial automatic 15-minute
cutout, driven by mounting fears of the damage the coronavirus
is doing to the global economy.
The halt at the opening was the third emergency pause in
Wall Street trading in six days, and followed another series of
drastic moves by the U.S. Federal Reserve over the weekend to
shore up the U.S. economy. Latest economic figures from China earlier on Monday showed
factory data plunging at its sharpest pace in three decades.
At 9:45 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI was
down 2,748.64 points, or 11.85%, at 20,436.98, the S&P 500
.SPX was down 264.65 points, or 9.76%, at 2,446.37 and the
Nasdaq Composite .IXIC was down 922.27 points, or 11.71%, at
6,952.60.
If the S&P 500 falls 13%, it will trigger a level-2 circuit
breaker and halt trading again for 15 minutes.