Evelyn Cheng | @chengevelyn
12 Hours AgoCNBC.com
U.S. stocks closed near session lows on Thursday, off more than 2 percent, as investors weighed continued uncertainty about the timing of a rate hike and concerns about global growth headed by slowing in China.
The S&P 500 and Dow Jones industrial average both had their worst day since Feb. 3, 2014. ( Tweet This )
“I think the markets are overly pessimistic,” said Anthony Valeri, investment strategist at LPL Financial. “I think this sentiment is panicking over news from China, the Fed (and) oil at six-year lows.”
Weakening in emerging market currencies on the heels of China’s yuan devaluation last week added to worries of broad economic slowdown.
“I think the oil and the geopolitical problems are the real problems for the market because we’re looking at lower global economic growth, and lower global growth is going to weigh on the U.S. as well,” said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Rockwell Global Capital.
The S&P 500 fell into the red for 2015 and closed down 1.1 percent for the year. Consumer discretionary led all 10 sectors lower with a decline of 2.8 percent for its worst daily performance since June 1, 2012. Energy is the greatest laggard for the year so far, down more than 18 percent.
https://www.cnbc.com/2015/08/20/us-stocks-open-lower-as-oil-slide-growth-concerns-weigh.html
