Wall Street Sell-off Deepens As Apple's Woes Persist; Dow Loses 2%

Washington, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th Nov, 2018 ) :Wall Street's sell-off gathered pace on Wednesday afternoon, with the benchmark Dow Jones Industrial Average briefly shedding two percent as shares in Apple continued to weaken.

With a half hour left in the trading day, the Dow had shaved off more than 500 points at 25,487.21 while the broader S&P 500 was down 1.6 percent at 2,737.05.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq had fallen furthest, losing 2.4 percent at 7,228.80.

Earlier in the day, President Donald Trump claimed, without evidence, that the Democrats' gains in last week's mid-term elections were causing the stock market woes.

"The prospect of Presidential Harassment by the Dems is causing the Stock Market big headaches!" he wrote on Twitter.

Trading volume was comparatively thin due to a public holiday, however, which can favor volatility. bond markets were also closed.

Apple, maker of the iPhone, had suffered during much of the day, with investors unnerved by slashed sales expectations from the manufacturer of a key component.

Shares were down 4.7 percent. Laser sensor maker Lumentum Holdings, the parts supplier, itself nosedived nearly 33 percent.

"Apple is dragging down the tech sector and actually the whole market," Peter Cardillo of Spartan Capital told AFP.

Earlier the VIX, a measure of market volatility, had hit its highest level in a week while embattled engineering giant General Electric was approaching its lowest close in nearly a decade.