NEW YORK, March 12 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks ended lower on Thursday.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 739.42 points, or 1.56 percent, to 46,677.85. The S&P 500 sank 103.18 points, or 1.52 percent, to 6,672.62. The Nasdaq Composite Index shed 404.155 points, or 1.78 percent, to 22,311.979.
Eight of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors ended in red, with industrials and consumer discretionary leading the laggards by going down 2.52 percent and 2.21 percent, respectively. Meanwhile, energy and utilities led the gainers by rising 0.98 percent and 0.73 percent, respectively.
