US stocks closed their worst two-week slide since November with a selloff Friday as disappointing China growth data sparked worries the global recovery was flagging. Concerns that Europe's debt crisis was flaring up again added to selling pressure. Sectors taking the hardest hit were those most closely linked to growth, including materials, energy and financials. The Dow Jones industrial average tumbled 136.99 points, or 1.05 percent, to 12,849.59 at the close. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index slid 17.31 points, or 1.25 percent, to 1,370.26. The Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 44.22 points, or 1.45 percent, to 3,011.33. The S&P 500 is still up 9 percent so far in 2012, but fell 2 percent over the week. The Dow lost 1.6 percent for the week and the Nasdaq dropped 2.2 percent. This week's losses came on top of the slide in the previous week, which was cut short a day for the Good Friday holiday. In that week, the Dow dropped 1.1 percent, while the S&P 500 slipped 0.7 percent and the Nasdaq shed 0.4 percent. For both the Dow industrials and the benchmark S&P 500, this was the worst two-week percentage drop since late November. The S&P 500 is now down 3.4 percent from this year's closing high, after falling 2.7 percent over the past two weeks. “Everyone is looking for global growth, but the slowing in China and the rising yields in Europe are creating questions about how strong we might expect it to be,” said Brad Sorensen, director of market and sector analysis at Charles Schwab in Denver. “That's leading to a correction here, with financials especially taking a hit.” Six percent of the S&P 500 components have reported results.
