Markets Close on Worst-Ever 2-Week Start to Year

US stocks plunged again, completing the worst two-week start to a year ever. The market was rattled Friday by yet another tumble in the price of oil that slammed energy companies and on a government report showing a dip in retail sales. The price of oil sank below $30 a barrel and is trading at the lowest level since 2003. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 390 points, or 2.4%, to close at 15,988. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 44 points, or 2.3%, to 1,876. The Nasdaq fell 126 points, or 2.7%, to 4,488.

The Dow and the S&P 500 are both down 8.2% since the beginning of the year. The Nasdaq is down 10.4%. The Dow was down 500 at one point. Click for more on the day's market woes. (More Dow Jones stories.)