Well, it was red across the board today -- not that it should come as a surprise as Dow futures on Thursday morning predicted a 300-point drop at open. The market didn't disappoint as the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 400 points in intraday trading before paring some of its losses and closing down 254 points, or 1.6%.
The S&P 500 closed down 1.23% and the Nasdaq closed down 0.39%.
WTI crude oil fell as low as $26.14 a barrel but recouped some losses following a tweet from a Wall Street Journal reporter that said -- citing United Arab Emirates' energy minister -- OPEC is ready to cooperate on a production cut.
Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen testified before the Senate Banking Committee on Thursday. She reiterated that the path to changes in the federal funds rate were not on a "preset course," but she also acknowleged the labor market is continuing to perform well. Yellen said negative interest rates are not "off the table but we would have to make sure that they would be workable."
Shares of Boeing (BA) fell 6.81% to $108.44 on news that the Securities and Exchange Commission was investigating the company's reporting of its costs and sales forecasts for the 787 Dreamliner and the 747. Boeing's drop accounted for 54 points of the Dow's decline on Thursday, according to data provide by Bloomberg.
AIG (AIG) reported earnings after Thursday's close, realizing a loss of $1.10 per share. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters forecast losses of $0.81 a share. The company also announced it was increasing the size of its board to 16 from 14 and that it nominated John Paulson of Paulson & Co. and Samual Merksamer of Icahn Capital to fill the seats. Activist investor Carl Icahn has a stake in AIG and recommended that AIG split into three companies, saying it is "too big to succeed" in its current structure.
Investors are likely hoping for a quiet Friday before the three-day weekend.
