Stocks Close in the Red

Updated from 3:25 p.m. EDT

Stocks in the U.S. slid into the close Tuesday as sellers swarmed Wall Street amid a slew of bad tidings, including warmer-than-expected inflationary data, negative news on the corporate side and another record for oil prices.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average tanked 199 points, or 1.5%, to 12,829 under the weight of Home Depot (HD Quote - Cramer on HD - Stock Picks), the day's worst-performing component, and all but two of other 29 stocks that the index tracks. The upside exceptions were energy giants Chevron (CVX Quote - Cramer on CVX - Stock Picks) and Exxon Mobil (XOM Quote - Cramer on XOM - Stock Picks).

Broader indices performed a bit better, but finished well under water: the S&P 500 sank 13 points, or 0.9%, to 1413, and the Nasdaq Composite was down 24 points, or 1%, at 2492.

Target Beats Estimates, Kinda

Bill Stone, chief investment strategist with PNC Wealth Management, said investors were probably spooked by the fact that yesterday's big afternoon rally couldn't sustain itself through the end of the day. He also believes today's declines constitute a natural unwinding after a months-long run-up for stocks.

"It's about time for a selloff," said Stone, "You have to take a step back every once in awhile. This doesn't shake me."

Before the opening bell, the Labor Department said that prices of goods at the wholesale level, excluding the volatile effects of energy and food, rose 0.4% in April from the prior month. That's double the increase that economists were expecting, and also twice the price pickup of the prior month. Year over year, the core index was up 3% -- the biggest gain since December 1991 and topping the 2.8% high set in July 2005.

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