NEW YORK - U.S. equity markets tumbled Monday with selling accelerating during the final hours of trading as the coronavirus task force updated the nation on the crisis.
In response to a question, President Trump said the crisis could extend until August. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped nearly 3,000 points or nearly 13 percent.
The worst point drop on record. This is the Dow's third onsecutive move in either direction of 9 percent or more, the longest streak since October 1929, as tracked by the Dow Jones Market Data Group.
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite also lost around 12 percent. Trading was halted for 15 minutes shortly after the opening bell due to the S&P 500's decline of more than 7 percent. RELATED: CoronavirusNOW.com,