Stocks fell significantly Tuesday after a report showing a worse-than-expected drop in U.S. existing-home sales sparked fears about an economic slump. The National Association of Realtors said existing-home sales plunged 27 percent in July to an annual rate of 3.83 million units. It was the biggest monthly drop in 15 years. Disappointing economic news has sent investors to the perceived safety of Treasury securities and the Japanese yen, which hit a 15-year high against the U.S. dollar early Tuesday. The U.S. dollar fell versus the euro and the yen. Light sweet crude oil for October delivery fell $1.47 to $71.63 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Gold futures rose $4.90 to $1,233.40 an ounce. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 133.96, or 1.3 percent, to 10,040.45. Shares of General Electric (GE) fell more than 2 percent, Pfizer dropped 2 percent, and Citigroup and Bank of America each lost more than 1 percent. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 15.49, or 1.45 percent, to 1,051.87. The technology-heavy Nasdaq composite index fell 35.87, or 1.7 percent, to 2,123.76.
