WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Stocks have moved sharply lower in morning trading on Tuesday, extending the pullback seen in the two previous sessions. The major averages have all shown significant moves to the downside.
Currently, the major averages are off their worst levels of the day but still firmly in the red. The Dow is down 411.62 points or 1.5 percent at 27,721.69, the Nasdaq is down 252.22 points or 2.2 percent at 11,060.91 and the S&P 500 is down57.68 points or 1.7 percent at 3,369.28.
The continued weakness on Wall Street comes as traders continue to cash in on the recent strength in the markets amid worries the rebound was overdone.
Energy stocks are turning in some of the market's worst performances on the day, moving lower along with the price of crude oil. Crude for October delivery is plunging $3.16 to $36.61 a barrel.
Reflecting the weakness in the energy sector, the Philadelphia Oil Service Index is down by 5.5 percent, the NYSE Arca Natural Gas Index is down by 4 percent and the NYSE Arca Oil Index is down by 3.5 percent.
Substantial weakness has also emerged among banking stocks, as reflected by the 3.1 percent nosedive by the KBW Bank Index.
Steel, brokerage and semiconductor stocks are also seeing considerable weakness, moving lower along with most of the other major sectors.
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly higher during trading on Tuesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index advanced by 0.8 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index climbed by 0.7 percent.
Meanwhile, the major European markets have moved to the downside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index has plunged by 1.8 percent, the German DAX Index is down by 1 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is down by 0.6 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries have moved higher following the sharp pullback seen in the previous session. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is down by 4.5 basis points at 0.676 percent.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX