Wall Street slides at open on earnings, data
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A street sign for Wall Street hangs in front of the New York Stock Exchange May 8, 2013. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson
NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks opened sharply lower on Tuesday, with Microsoft and Caterpillar shares tumbling after both posted earnings, while an unexpected decline in durable goods orders also weighed on sentiment.
The Dow Jones industrial average (.DJI) fell 222.56 points, or 1.26 percent, to 17,456.14, the S&P 500 (.SPX) lost 19.29 points, or 0.94 percent, to 2,037.8 and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) dropped 73.43 points, or 1.54 percent, to 4,698.33 points.