SAN FRANCISCO — Stock losses accelerated in the final hour of trading Friday as worries over Europe’s debt trumped mixed economic data, closing a turbulent third quarter that counted as the worst for the major indexes since the depths of the financial crisis.
The Dow Jones industrial average, which had struggled over the session to maintain moderate losses, dropped 240.60, or 2.2 percent, to close at 10,913.38.
While the index was up 1.3 percent for the week, it dropped 6 percent for the month, the fifth consecutive monthly loss, and fell 12 percent for the quarter, the worst quarter since the one ending in March 2009.
John Canally, an investment strategist at LPL Financial, said much of Friday’s market activity has to do with end-of-quarter selling.
“The data are suggesting slow growth, while the market is suggesting recession; that’s the tug of war that’s going on right now,” he added.
The S&P 500 fell 28.98 points, or 2.5 percent, to close at 1,131.42. It’s down 7.2 percent for the month and 14 percent in the three months since the end of June.
The Nasdaq composite closed down 65.36 points, or 2.6 percent, at 2,415.40. It shed 6.4 percent for the month and nearly 13 percent for the quarter. The quarterly declines mark the worst quarter for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq since December 2008.
Headlines from Europe fed concerns over the region’s growth and debt outlook, prompting stocks to falter early.
Euro-zone inflation accelerated to a 3 percent annual pace in September, effectively quashing hopes of a possible European Central Bank interest-rate cut.
September’s reading of consumer sentiment rose to 59.4, recovering from a nearly three-year low of 55.7 in August, according to a Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan gauge.
Manufacturing activity in the Chicago region, meanwhile, expanded at a more rapid pace, rising to 60.4 in September from 56.5 in August.
