Dow Jones nosedives
The Dow Jones industrial average has closed with a loss of more than 90 points.
Despondent investors intensified their selloff of blue chips on Wall Street, sending the index into bear market territory for much of the session.
A last-hour rally allowed the Dow to recover ground, closing at 9,389.48.
The Dow, which dropped by triple digits in six of the past nine trading sessions, tumbled to the 9,379 level in the opening minutes of trading.
This put the blue chip index down more than 20% from the closing high of 11,722.98 it reached on January 14, 2000. A decline of 20% is considered bear market territory.
The Dow continued to slide in heavy late afternoon trading, falling more than 380 points to just under 9,107.
But it regained ground in the final hour and closed down a more moderate 97.52.
The loss means the Dow, which last week suffered its worst weekly point drop, has fallen 1,233.90, or 11.4%, in the past 10 trading sessions.
Investors are in "deep despair", said Hugh Johnson, chief investment officer for First Albany Corp.
"There is a sense of giving up. They are extraordinarily depressed and demoralised."
Broader market indicators were mixed.
The Nasdaq composite index, down more than 62% from its own high of 5,048.62 reached March 10, 2000, advanced 67.48 to 1,897.71.
The market's broadest measure, the Standard & Poor's 500, was down 4.56 at 1,117.58, having made a last-minute recovery of its own. The S&P 500 has lost more than a quarter of its value since peaking at 1,527.46 a year ago.
