Dow Jones Industrial Average Ends Lower; Gold Suffers Worst Day in Years

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) finished a choppy session lower, as stocks followed commodity prices into the red. A stronger dollar ultimately weighed on crude oil futures, and fueled gold's worst session since 2013. Traders continued to keep an eye on Deutsche Bank AG (USA) (NYSE:DB), and digested reports that the European Central Bank (ECB) could scale back its quantitative easing program sooner than expected. In addition, while the International Monetary Fund (IMF) downwardly revised its U.S. growth forecast, Richmond Fed President Jeffrey Lacker offered up some hawkish commentary.

Continue reading for more on today's market, including:

• The chatter that sent Sears Holdings Corp (NASDAQ:SHLD) volume to an annual high.
• Options players are aiming for new post-earnings highs for this fast food titan.
• The drugmaker that got demolished today.
• Plus... Google takes aim at Apple, Yahoo's email-scanning scandal, and why one analyst thinks Twitter needs to sell ASAP.
  

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA - 18,168.45) dropped 85.4 points, or 0.5%. Of the seven Dow winners, JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) ended with the biggest gains, up 0.9%, while 3M Co (NYSE:MMM) led the 23 laggards, losing 1.9%. 

The S&P 500 Index (SPX - 2,150.49) ended the day down 10.7 points, or 0.5%, and the Nasdaq Composite (COMP - 5,289.66) also finished lower, giving up 11.2 points, or 0.2%.

The CBOE Volatility Index (VIX - 13.63) gained 0.1 point, or 0.4%.

5 Items on Our Radar Today

1. Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL) unveiled a number of new products at its product reveal event today, including a new "Pixel" smartphone, virtual reality headset, and a voice-activated digital assistant, among others. Many of the products appear designed to directly compete with those currently dominating the markets, including Apple Inc.'s (NASDAQ:AAPL) iPhone. (Reuters)
2. Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ:YHOO) is under fire as reports surface that the email service provider worked with U.S. intelligence officials to secretly scan hundreds of millions of customers' incoming emails. (CNBC)
3. Why bullion bulls are feeling the pain.
4. Call options were hot as Etsy Inc (NASDAQ:ETSY) shares hit new highs.
5. Why one analyst is telling Twitter Inc (NYSE:TWTR) to sell ASAP.

Data courtesy of Trade-Alert

Commodities:

November-dated crude ended a choppy session in the red by 12 cents, or 0.3%, at $48.69 per barrel, after touching three-month highs earlier in the day. Hopes for a global production cut initially helped black gold rally, but a rising dollar strong-armed crude futures into negative territory.

Gold plummeted as the dollar rose, breaking south of the critical $1,300 mark, to land the precious metal at a three-month low. December-dated gold lost $43, or 3.3%, to end the day at $1,269.70 per ounce -- its worst percentage loss since December 2013.