Stocks ended lower Thursday, building on the previous session’s rout as the S&P 500 fell closer to bear-market territory. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell around 237 points, or 0.8%, to close near 31,253, according to preliminary figures, while the S&P 500 dropped around 23 points, or 0.6%, to finish near 3,901. The Nasdaq Composite lost around 30 points, or 0.3%, ending near 11,389. A finish below 3,837.25 would mark a fall of at least 20% from the S&P 500’s Jan. 3 record close and would meet the widely used definition of a bear market. Stocks fell sharply on Wednesday, with the Dow and S&P 500 posting their biggest one-day losses since June 2020, after disappointing results from retailing giant Target Corp. sparked fears that rising costs were beginning to cut into corporate profit margins.
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