NEW YORK -- Stocks plunged today, sending the Dow industrials into another triple-digit tailspin, trailing world markets downward, as a reassessment of Japanese finances showed little progress in its effort to restart Asia's stalled economic engine. Dow off 112
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 112 points to 8,462.85. An earlier 258-point plunge put the Dow below last week's low point, a level many had hoped would represent a bottom in the market's sudden retreat from record terrain. The Dow now sits nearly 900 points below the record of 9,337.97 set on July 17 -- a correction of almost 10 percent.
Broad-market indicators were also pummeled by the early barrage of sell orders, which came after another day of discouraging developments in Japan's financial crisis.
The Standard & Poor's 500 fell 14.16 to 1,068.98, and the technology-heavy Nasdaq composite index fell 46.51 to 1,792.70.
Decliners outnumbered advancers by a 9-to-2 margin on the New York Stock Exchange, with 570 up, 2,613 down and 380 unchanged.
NYSE volume totaled 770.94 million shares vs. 572.64 million yesterday. The NYSE composite index slid 7.77 to 537.95, and the American Stock Exchange composite index fell 20.53 to 659.27. The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 11.04 to 400.60.
The benchmark 30-year Treasury bond rose 25 cents, or $2.50 per $1,000 bond. The yield fell 1 basis point to 5.61 percent after touching 5.55 percent, the lowest since the government began regular sales of the securities in 1977.
Tokyo stock prices lost 1.4 percent in falling for the seventh consecutive trading day.