US stocks tumble amid tech sell-off

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US stocks ended much lower on Monday, erasing handsome gains in early trading, as a decline in tech shares weighed on the market.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 245.39 points, or 0.99 percent, to 24,442.92. The S&P 500 decreased by 17.44 points, or 0.66 percent, to 2,641.25. The Nasdaq Composite Index dropped by 116.92 points, or 1.63 percent, to 7,050.29.

The Dow swung more than 900 points during the session, with a 352-point gain at the high and about a 566-point loss at the low. Boeing shares slid by 6.59 percent, leading the laggards in the Dow.

Major US tech shares fell, dragging the Nasdaq. Shares of Amazon and Netflix dropped by 6.33 and 5 percent, respectively, at market closing. Shares of US chipmaker Nvidia also slumped by more than 6 percent.

Six of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors ended lower, with energy and technology down 1.88 and 1.81 percent, respectively, leading the losers.

Shares of Red Hat surged by more than 45 percent after IBM agreed to buy the software-and-services company for about 34 billion US dollars. However, shares of IBM traded 4.13 percent lower.

Wall Street also digested a slew of economic data.

US consumer spending climbed by 0.4 percent in September as Americans spent more on new cars and trucks and recreational goods, the Commerce Department reported Monday. The reading is in line with market consensus. The personal income rose by a smaller 0.2 percent, less than expected.

The US stock market has been under pressure since the beginning of October with all three major indices decreasing sharply as investors fret over rate hikes, trade tensions between Washington and its key trading partners and signs of slowing global growth.

Source(s): Xinhua News Agency