Wall Street slips 1% after sell-off in commodities

The US markets ended sharply lower after a hike in oil and gas inventories triggered a sell-off in commodities amid worries of a global economic slowdown. The major indices fell by a percent.

Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.02% or 130.33 poinst at 12630.03. Nasdaq Composite was down 0.93% or 26.83 points at 2845.06. Standard & Poor's 500 shed 1.11% or 15.08 points at 1342.08.

In the economic data to watch out for, the producer price index for April is expected to come out today. The month on month change is expected to have fallen slightly at 0.6%. The change excluding food and energy would be at 0.2%.

Retail sales for April are expected today. The month on month figures are expected to rise to 0.6%, while the change excluding auto sales is expected to drop from 0.8% to 0.6%.

On the employment front, initial weekly jobless claim is expected to fall to 430,000 from 474,000. Business inventories for March are expected to rise to 0.8% from a 0.5% for February.

The euro trades near a 3 week low against the dollar on concerns that Greece may not receive additional aid fast enough to avoid debt restructuring.   

Oil slipped below USD 100 after an unexpected rise in gasoline stocks amid slowing demand sent prices into a tailspin, triggering a five-minute halt in trade and fueling the second big commodities sell-off in a week, They are slightly higher currently in Asian trade.

Gold fell, halting a 3 session rally, as a stronger dollar eroded the appeal of the precious metal as an alternative asset. Silver tumbled more than 8% weighed down by the rising dollar.