Stocks fell sharply on Wednesday, adding to Wall Street's poor start to the final quarter of 2019 as investors grapple with fears of an economic recession.
The Dow Jones Industrials plunged 288.15 points, or 1.1%, to 26,284.89, to break below its 50-day and 100-day moving averages, two technical levels watched by traders.
Dow Inc was the worst-performing stock on the 30-stock index, sliding 3%.
The S&P 500 slumped 34.05 points, or 1.2%, to 2,906.20, to fall below its 100-day moving average as the industrials sector dropped 1.5%. Eaton Corp and United Rentals were among the laggards in the sector. They both fell at least 2.9%.
The NASDAQ Composite stepped back 87.64 points, or 1.1% to 7,821.05, as large-cap tech companies followed the broader market lower. Facebook, Apple and Alphabet all dropped at least 1%. Amazon slid 0.9%.
Wall Street's focus remained on the economic data as private payrolls growth slowed down in September, according to a report from ADP and Moody's Analytics. Payrolls increased by 135,000 in September, a drop from 157,000 in August. The gains from August also reflected a downward revision of nearly 40,000 payrolls.
The data from ADP and Moody's Analytics is seen by investors as a preview to the government's monthly jobs report, which will be released Friday
Prices for the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury were slightly higher, lowering yields to 1.63% from Tuesday's 1.64%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices slid 16 cents to $53.46 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices regained $8.80 to $1,497.80 U.S. an ounce.