Investing.com - U.S. stocks plunged on Wednesday in wake of disappointing U.S. retail sales and wholesale pricing data, though bottom fishing brought equities indices up from earlier lows later in the session.
At the close of U.S. trading, the Dow 30 fell 1.06%, the S&P 500 index fell 0.81%, while the NASDAQ Composite index fell 0.28%.
The Volatility S&P 500 index, which measures the outlook for market volatility, was down 14.57% at 26.11.
The Census Bureau reported earlier that U.S. retail sales fell 0.3% last month, exceeding forecasts for a 0.1% decline, after expanding 0.6% in August.
Core retail sales, which exclude motor vehicles and parts, dropped 0.2% in September, defying expectations for a 0.3% gain, after rising 0.3% the previous month.
A separate report showed that U.S. producer price inflation slipped 0.1% in September, disappointing expectations for a 0.1% rise, after a flat reading in August.
September's year-on-year PPI rose 1.6%, missing expectations for a 1.8% gain.
Elsewhere, the Federal Reserve of New York reported that its manufacturing index tumbled to a six-month low of 6.2 in October from 27.5 in September. Analysts had expected the index to tick down to 25.5 this month.
Reports a second healthcare worker at a Dallas hospital has tested positive for Ebola and had flown a day before reporting symptoms also sent investors ditching equities as did news Wal-Mart cut its forward earnings guidance.
Leading Dow Jones Industrial Average performers included Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ), up 1.24%, Dupont Fabros Technology Inc (NYSE:DFT), up 0.83%, and General Electric Company (NYSE:GE), up 0.77%.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average's worst performers included J P Morgan Chase & Co (NYSE:JPM), down 4.29%, Wal-Mart Stores Inc (NYSE:WMT), down 3.56%, and Merck & Company Inc (NYSE:MRK), down 2.85%.
European indices, meanwhile, ended the day lower.
After the close of European trade, the DJ Euro Stoxx 50 fell 3.58%, France's CAC 40 fell 3.63%, while Germany's DAX fell 2.87%. Meanwhile, in the U.K. the FTSE 100 fell 2.83%.
On Thursday, the U.S. is to release the weekly report on initial jobless claims as well as data on industrial production and manufacturing activity in the Philadelphia region.