Wall Street ended lower on Thursday, as investors digested a batch of negative data that pointed to slowing US economic activity and grew concerned over US-China trade prospects.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 280.85 points, or 1.05 per cent, to 26,583.42. The S&P 500 was down 26.82 points, or 0.90 per cent, to 2,953.56.
The Nasdaq Composite Index fell 64.30 points, or 0.79 per cent, to 8,111.12, reports Xinhua.
Seven of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors traded lower around market close, with the financials sector down nearly 2.1 per cent, leading the losers.
The overwhelming majority of the 30 blue-chip stocks in the Dow also extended losses, with shares of Goldman Sachs Group down nearly 3.9 per cent, among the worst performers.
The Cboe Volatility index, widely considered the best fear gauge in the stock market, increased 10.86 per cent to 17.87 on Thursday.
More specifically, shares of Caterpillar and Intel, both sensitive to global trade, fell 3.71 per cent and 2.08 per cent respectively. Shares of 3M lost 0.78 per cent.
Yet shares of Yum Brands rose over 3.9 per cent, as the US fast food chain reported second-quarter earnings that topped market estimates.
On the economic front, the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) manufacturing index fell to 51.2 in July from June's 51.7, the lowest reading since August 2016, ISM said on Thursday.
The reading indicated that the US manufacturing sector expanded at its slowest pace over the past three years.
Initial jobless claims, or the number of Americans filing applications for unemployment benefits, rose moderately to 215,000 in the week ending July 27, said the labour department on Thursday.
The reading marked an increase of 8,000 from the previous week's level, which was revised up by 1,000 to 207,000.
On Wednesday, the Fed cut its interest rates range by a quarter point, which marked the first time since December 2008, when rates were reduced close to zero during the global financial crisis.