Stocks See Third-Worst Drop This Year

Markets are turning turbulent again after investors were unnerved by more signs of weakness in China, the world's second-largest economy. US stocks sank 3% today, their third-worst drop this year. The two bigger falls occurred in the last two weeks. The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 469 points, or 2.8%, to 16,058. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 58 points, or 3%, to 1,913. The Nasdaq slid 140 points, or 2.9%, to 4,636.

Oil prices also fell sharply as traders worried that China's weakening growth would mean lower demand for crude. US oil sank almost 8%. The plunge in oil sent energy stocks sharply lower. Exxon Mobil dropped 4%. Bond prices rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.16%. (More Dow Jones stories.)