U.S. markets tumbled Monday in wild trading as investors worried that one of Chinas biggest property developers could default on hundreds of billions of debt, a scenario that would have ripple effects across the economy.
Investors also grappled with the threat of a government shutdown and uncertainty over the Federal Reserves monetary policy, which has helped to fortify the economy since the initial shocks of the pandemic.
The Dow Jones industrial average was down more than 900 points in afternoon trading before cutting its losses. It closed at 33,970.47, down 614.41 points, or 1.8 percent The S&P 500 index has notched back-to-back losses for the past two weeks, and the trend continued Monday: The broad gauge was down 1.7 percent at the closing bell. The tech-heavy Nasdaq pulled back even further, falling nearly 2.2 percent.