The Dow Jones Industrials dumped 318.07 points, or 1%, to pause for lunch at 30,643.75
The S&P 500 sank 47.15 points, or 1.2%, to 3,854.20.
The NASDAQ Composite subtracted 173.45 points, or 1.5%, to 11,378.91.
Shares of FedEx plunged 24% after the shipments company withdrew its full-year guidance and said it will implement cost-cutting initiatives to contend with soft global shipment volumes as the global economy “significantly worsened.”
Transport stocks are typically seen as a leading economic indicator, and FedEx pointed to weakness in Asia as one of the main reasons for its negative outlook. Shares of shipping rivals UPS lost 4% and XPO Logistics dropped 7%, and Amazon’s stock fell 3%.
The three major averages were on pace to notch their fourth losing week in five as a comeback rally looks increasingly like a bear market bounce. The Dow Jones Industrial Average has declined 4.7% this week, while the S&P 500 is 3.8% lower. The NASDAQ is down 6.2%, headed toward its worst weekly loss since June.
The University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment index preliminary September reading came in at 59.5, just below a Dow Jones estimate of 60. That print was still slightly above August’s final reading of 58.2.
Treasury prices gained, lowering yields to 3.43% from Thursday’s 3.45%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite direction.
Oil prices poked up 35 cents to $85.45 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices dropped $1.70 to $1,675.60 U.S. an ounce.