Dow tanks nearly 900 points on CDC coronavirus-led selloff

U.S. equities tumbled for a second session amid heavy volatility that pushed the Dow Jones Industrial Average briefly below the 27,000 level.

Ticker	Security	Last	Change	Change %
I:DJI	DOW JONES AVERAGES	43870.35	+461.88	+1.06%
SP500	S&P 500	5948.71	+31.60	+0.53%
I:COMP	NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX	18972.420086	+6.28	+0.03%

All three of the major averages opened with modest gains but quickly rolled over into negative territory extending the previous day's losses that were brought on by the spreading of the coronavirus outside of China.

The CDC advised Americans that the disease could spread in the United States prompting a new wave of fears.

White House Economic Advisor Larry Kudlow, speaking to reporters, acknowledged that the coronavirus will hit first-quarter GDP while stressing it is too soon to evaluate the full impact.

Ticker	Security	Last	Change	Change %
UAL	UNITED AIRLINES HOLDINGS INC.	94.40	-0.23	-0.24%
DAL	DELTA AIR LINES INC.	63.34	-0.28	-0.45%
AAL	AMERICAN AIRLINES GROUP INC.	14.20	-0.26	-1.80%

The NYSE Arca Airline Index slipped into correction territory, as tracked by the Dow Jones Market Data Group. Many of the airlines have dialed back or suspended flights to China's Wuhan region. On Monday, United Airlines withdrew its 2020 financial forecast citing a drastic drop in business to Asia.

"As a result of COVID-19, we are currently seeing an approximately 100 percent decline in near-term demand to China and an approximately 75 percent decline in near-term demand on the rest of our trans-Pacific routes..."

The selling on Tuesday follows Monday's drop which was the steepest decline for equities in two years

As money flowed out of stocks, investors bought U.S. Treasurys. The yield on the 10-year note closed down 4.9 basis points at a record low 1.328 percent, a sign of a flight to safety.

CORONAVIRUS OUTBREAK INTENSIFIES RECESSION WORRIES

The equity selling follows Monday's rout as the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 fell more than 3 percent to their biggest losses in two years while the Nasdaq endured its largest decline since December 2018.

Updated figures from the World Health Organization show the coronavirus has infected 79,331 people worldwide while killing 2,618.

Looking at stocks, drugmakers working on treatments for the coronavirus, including Gilead Sciences and Novavax continued to gain ground while airlines and cruise operators recouped some of their losses.

Meanwhile, United Airlines suspended its full-year guidance due to uncertainty caused by the coronavirus.

Ticker	Security	Last	Change	Change %
GILD	GILEAD SCIENCES INC.	89.76	+1.13	+1.27%
NVAX	NOVAVAX INC.	8.04	-0.02	-0.25%
UAL	UNITED AIRLINES HOLDINGS INC.	94.40	-0.23	-0.24%
CCL	CARNIVAL CORP.	25.35	+0.27	+1.08%

On the earnings front, Home Depot reported better-than-expected top- and bottom-line results and hiked its dividend by 10 percent.

Macy’s fourth-quarter profit fell 54 percent year over year, but its fourth-quarter earnings and sales exceeded estimates.

Elsewhere, Shake Shack posted a fourth-quarter loss of $2.1 million, or 6 cents a share, as same-store sales slid 3.6 percent year over year.

Tupperware Brands was under pressure after warning on its 2019 profit and announcing an investigation into its accounting practices.

Ticker	Security	Last	Change	Change %
HD	THE HOME DEPOT INC.	410.39	+10.39	+2.60%
M	MACY'S INC.	15.07	+0.51	+3.50%
SHAK	SHAKE SHACK	122.35	+3.04	+2.54%
TUP	NO DATA AVAILABLE	-	-	-

Commodities were lower with West Texas Intermediate crude oil down 3 percent at $49.90 a barrel and gold off 1.5 percent at $1646.90 an ounce.

In Europe, Britain’s FTSE, France’s CAC and Germany’s DAX were all lower by 1.9 percent.

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Asian markets were mixed with Japan’s Nikkei tumbling 3.3 percent, China’s Shanghai Composite shedding 0.6 percent and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng up 0.3 percent.