Feeble Data, Credit Fears Sink Stocks

Updated from 4:08 p.m. EDT

Stocks in the U.S. sank Wednesday as traders digested weak economic data and more signs of credit-related troubles on the corporate front.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average surrendered 109.74 points, or 0.9%, to finish at 12,422.86. The S&P 500 gave up 11.86 points, or 0.9%, to 1341.13, and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 16.69 points, or 0.7%, to 2324.36.

Weighing on the market was a report from the Commerce Department that orders for durable goods dropped 1.7% in February -- an improvement from the prior month's revised 4.7% decline, but far short of the 0.7% climb that economists were expecting. Excluding transportation goods, durables orders sank 2.6%, missing the forecast by a wide margin and more than doubling from January's decline. ...