NEW YORK — A dismal report on retail spending in the U.S. and signs of slowing global growth drove stocks lower and sent yields on government bonds plunging as investors sought safety.
U.S. stocks fell from the start of trading on a report that consumers pulled back on spending last month and on a slump in European markets. At one point, the Dow Jones industrial average shed nearly 350 points.
Investors dumped some key commodities on fears global growth is stalling, pushing the price of copper to a five-year low, and they piled into German, British and U.S. government bonds. The yield on the 30-year U.S. Treasury fell to its lowest on record.
“We haven’t seen volatility like this for years,” said John Canally, investment strategist for LPL Financial. “People are more worried.”
The Commerce Department reported that retail sales fell 0.9 percent in December, the biggest decline since January last year.
“There was a perception that the economy was improving, but that has gotten called into question,” said Peter Tuz, a portfolio manager at Chase Investment Counsel, which manages $400 million of assets. “The savings from lower gas prices hasn’t translated into higher consumer spending yet.”
A report from the World Bank late Tuesday also weighed on markets. The bank lowered its forecast for global growth this year to 3 percent from 3.4 percent. It blamed sluggish economies in Europe and Japan and a slowdown in China.
The Standard & Poor’s 500 index fell 11.76 points, 0.6 percent, to 2,011.27.
The Nasdaq composite fell 22.18 points, or 0.5 percent, to 4,639.32 And the Dow Jones industrial average dropped 186.59 points, or 1.1 percent, to 17,427.09.
Stocks are swinging more this year as investors become anxious. The Dow index was down as much as 348.78 points in the early afternoon before gaining back much of its losses. On Tuesday, the difference between the Dow’s high and low was more than 400 points.
Investors will turn their attention next to more corporate earnings reports. A handful of big companies are expected to report Thursday, including giant money manager BlackRock, energy company Schlumberger and Intel Corp., the world’s largest chip maker.
