NEW YORK, Nov. 20 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks plunged on Tuesday, with the Dow erasing more than 500 points, amid disappointing retail earnings and tech sector slide.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 551.80 points, or 2.21 percent, to 24,465.64. The S&P 500 decreased 48.84 points, or 1.82 percent, to 2,641.89. The Nasdaq Composite Index fell 119.65 points, or 1.70 percent, to 6,908.82.
Three major factors contributed to Tuesday's sell-off, namely the disappointing news about the some big retail names, the continued tech sector sell-off, and the oil price plunge, said analysts.
Target fell 10.52 percent after reporting weaker-than-expected earnings for the third quarter. Its adjusted earnings per share stood at 1.09 U.S. dollars, lower than the 1.12 dollars expected. Its revenue was 17.82 billion dollars, slightly higher than analysts' expectations.
The company's same-store sales growth, which is a key metric for retailers, stood at 5.1 percent, lighter than forecast.
Kohl's and Macy's, also big retailers, plunged 9.23 percent and 3.42 percent respectively.
In tech sector, shares of Apple plunged 4.78 percent on Tuesday. Its stock price erased nearly 4 percent on Monday at close after reports said the company cut production of orders for the new iPhones that came out earlier this year.
The oil prices plummeted on Tuesday, as U.S. President Donald Trump reaffirmed Saudi Arabia as "a great ally" and signaled it won't punish Saudi crown prince over journalist Jamal Khashoggi's killing.
Trump's remarks came two weeks ahead of a meeting between Saudi-led OPEC and world's other oil producers to discuss about potential output cut and potential global oil policy in December, in a bid to grapple with the current supply glut worrying investors.
The West Texas Intermediate for January delivery slumped 3.33 U.S. dollars to settle at 53.43 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while Brent crude for January delivery plunged 4.26 dollars to close at 62.53 dollars a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange. Enditem
