US stocks tumbled the most in a year on concern Europe’s debt crisis

US stocks tumbled the most in a year on concern Europe’s debt crisis will halt the global recovery. The weakness was widespread for the entire session as participants showed an aversion to risk.

The CBOE volatility index, widely considered the best gauge of fear in the market, was around 34 at the closing bell, after being above 40 earlier. The VIX ended last week around 22.

Financials were pummeled, with Bank of America down more than 7% and JP Morgan off more than 4%.

The Dow ended down 347.80 points, or 3.2%, at 10,520.32, after being down as much as 998.50 earlier, the Dow’s biggest intraday drop on record. The S&P 500 shed 3.2%, while the Nasdaq lost 3.4%.

The dollar jumped to a 14-month high against the euro after the ECB failed to offer any additional measures to ease the Greek debt crisis. The euro tumbled below USD 1.26 as fears of financial contagion in Europe intensified and US stocks sold off.

The CRB commodity index fell another 2%. The index is down nearly 6% since Monday morning. June crude oil futures fell 3.6% to USD 77.11 per barrel.

Industrial commodities fell 4.6%, led by an 11% decline in July nickel futures. But gold shines as safe-haven trade amid the panic. June gold shot up 1.6% higher in the pit trade to close at 1197.30 dollars per ounce. It spiked to just under the 1210 dollar level, as the selling in the market peaked.

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