Dow closes down 600 after Brexit surprise; financials post worst day since 2011

U.S. stocks plunged more than 3 percent Friday to end in the red for the year so far after Britain surprised markets by voting to leave the European Union.

“It’s a combination of at first positioning, plus the reality that this issue is not the most simple to address and something you don’t have precedent for,” said Lefteris Farmakis, a macro strategist at UBS.

The Dow Jones industrial average closed down about 611 points — its eighth-largest point loss ever — with Goldman Sachs contributing the most to declines. On a percentage basis the Dow and S&P had their worst day since August 2015, while the Nasdaq composite’s 4.1 percent decline was the index’s worst since August 2011.

With Friday’s drop, both the Dow and S&P erased their gains for the year so far. The Nasdaq composite was nearly 6 percent lower year-to-date.

Financials dropped 5.4 percent in their worst day since August 2011 to lead nine S&P 500 sectors lower.

Pound sterling fell more than 10 percent against the U.S. dollar between its high of $1.500 touched late Thursday to the overnight low of $1.3224, its lowest since 1985. Sterling was last near $1.366. - Read More at the NBR

Dow closes down 600 after Brexit surprise; financials post worst day since 2011