NEW YORK » A warning from tech giant Intel about poor business conditions and more evidence of rising unemployment left stocks with their biggest losses in a month yesterday.

The news upended some investors' hopes for a speedy economic recovery this year and sent the major stock indexes down more than 2.5 percent.

Intel's second warning since November, as well as bleak outlooks from aluminum producer Alcoa Inc. and media industry bellwether Time Warner Inc., underscored the breadth of the economy's slowdown. In addition, the ADP National Employment Report said private sector jobs fell by a greater-than-expected 693,000 in December. That made investors nervous ahead of Friday's employment report from the government.

But unlike the panicked declines seen last fall, yesterday's pullback was more orderly and stocks finished off their lowest levels of the session.

Wall Street has been absorbing poor economic and corporate news far better since late November, with some investors betting on a recovery in the second half of this year or by early 2010. But the latest round of unnerving news was too proved to be too much to set aside.

Other corporate news added to Wall Street's downbeat mood. Alcoa warned late Tuesday it would slash its annual output by more than 18 percent and cut its global work force by 13 percent. And Time Warner said yesterday it plans to book a $25 billion impairment charge in the fourth quarter for its cable, publishing and AOL units.

The glum news sent the Dow down 245.40, or 2.72 percent, to 8,769.70, its biggest point and percentage decline since Dec. 1.

Broader stock indicators also tumbled. The S&P 500 index fell 28.05, or 3 percent, to 906.65. It was the biggest drop for the index since Dec. 1.

The Nasdaq composite index fell 53.32, or 3.23 percent, to 1,599.06, hit by the decline in Intel shares.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 17.61, or 3.42 percent, to 497.10.

Light, sweet crude slumped 12 percent, falling $5.95 to settle at $42.63 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.